Zuni Carved Frog Fetish, Banded Alabaster with Turquoise Inlay

A frog fetish hand-carved from a richly figured alabaster that runs cream, honey, and salmon-pink through a distinct dark-veined band — a natural stratum the carver oriented to cross the body, breaking the form into warm color zones. The animal is worked in the compact, rounded Zuni manner, with the mouth incised as a broad horizontal line, the forelimbs and toes cut in relief, and the eyes and dorsal spots set with inset turquoise cabochons and smaller turquoise pin-dots. The alabaster's semi-translucent quality gives the piece a soft inner glow that shifts with the light.

Frog carvings hold enduring meaning in Zuni fetish tradition, tied to water, rain, and fertility — motifs that carry particular weight across the arid Pueblo world. The turquoise inlay follows the long practice of offering stone and shell to the fetish, here doubling as decorative accent along the spine. A palm-sized piece with good tactile weight for its scale.

CONDITION

Good with no remarkable damage. All turquoise insets are present and seated. Light surface handling marks consistent with age and use.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall: 1/2" H × 1 1/2" W × 1 1/2" D
• Weight: 20.3 grams
• Materials: Carved alabaster with turquoise insets
• Unmarked
• U.S. Quarter (0.955" Dia.) Shown for Scale — Not Included