Vince's Elephant
The piece is made of Amazonite and is approximately 8" tall, 5" wide and 5" deep. It has cross hatching on it and is clearly a one of a kind sculpture. I took it to a friend of mine who sells gem stones and he identified the material and stated the approximate weight to be 2 liters. He said that the value of the stone alone is approxmimately $300. It does have a marking on it that appears to have been scratched in "BT". I purchased it at a swap meet from a diver who found it near a yacht wreck.
Swap meet.
Other
Yes
The appraised work appears to be a lapidary sculpture of two elephant heads carved from amazonite—a green colored stone. Lapidary refers to the art of cutting and polishing stone and has its roots in prehistory, where early humans began fashioning tools and weapons from various stones. Over time, these techniques were also used for items of personal adornment. Stone carving eventually evolved as an art form in many cultures throughout the world. During the 1950s, lapidary became a popular hobby in the United States. Practitioners enjoyed cutting and polishing gemstones and mounting them within jewelry settings or creating elaborate carved sculptures that usually depict animal imagery.
The estimate provided is based on comparables recently offered and sold at auction. In many cases, pricing for similar examples available on the primary (retail) market vary, and are often higher than secondary (auction) market examples.
