Chinese Antiques

Antique Vases, Bowls, Statues, swords and more

Carved Soapstone

March 30th, 2009

Angie

Carved Soapstone

Carved Soap Stone Mortar & Pestle

$9.99

A beautiful flowery design carved Mortar Pestle, this can be used for grinding Herbs, Resins, Spices etc….

Soap Stone Carved Mortar & Pestle 4D

$13.99

A mortar & pestle is used to grind together herbs and incense resins. The stick-shaped pestle crushes the ingredients in the bowl. Many people use it to create magical blends for spells…

Celtic Knot Craved Soap Stone Mortar & Pestle 2.5H 4D

$13.99

Mortar & Pestle are great for grinding Herbs, Resins, Spices etc….

Liquid Amber – Solid Perfume In Small Hand Carved Stone Jar – Song of India

$7.95

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Sandal (Sandalwood) – Solid Perfume In Small Hand Carved Stone Jar – Song of India

$7.95

Create memorable moments with exotic fragrances. A great way to wear perfumes, no spill and no mess. The jar is hand carved from natural soap stone, so every one is unique. The jar is 1.25″ in diameter and contains about 5 grams (1/6 of an ounce) of solid perfume….

Soapstone Carving Information

Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a metamorphic rock, a talc-schist. Soapstone has been used in India for centuries as a soft medium for carving, many of the Hoysala Empire temples were made from soapstone.

A soft, easily carved stone that polishes beautifully, soapstone is a favorite medium of ethnic carvers, most notably the Inuit of North America. Easily obtained, it can be worked with very few special tools.

While this is an easy stone to carve, there is little information on how to do this. www.soapstonecarving.net is a great resource that provides links to various books, tools and carvings to buy.

You will find Stone Carving Kit Starter Set that introduces beginners, as well as established artists, to carving jewelry, medallions, and small figures.

Books on how to carve Soapstone for adults and for children. Video information on the history of soapstone carving in North America 5000 years ago. You will also find incredible carved objects like boxes, elephants, necklaces and even wine holders!

Many of the carved object are from India and some of the artist themselves have left biographies here is an exert from one:

My name is Gulam Rasool and I was born in the year 1940. My city is so rich in traditional marble sculpting that anyone visiting would never get enough of the exotic beauty and artistic work of the people here. I belong to a family who has a long relationship with the art of sculpting marble. I became interested in this rich work and started helping my father in his work. My father was an expert in marble sculpting and jali (openwork). He was honored with the state award for excellence in marble sculpting in 1979. I learned a lot from him and chose to follow his path.

After working with my father for a long time, I ventured out on my own. I experimented with different designs and gave a new dimension to the traditional styles. At that time, there were very few tourists coming to India and all we got from a hard day’s work were a few bucks from selling souvenir items made of soapstone. Over the years, however, things have changed as far as our work’s popularity is concerned. More and more tourists come to India to learn about our exquisite art.

I carve soapstone and am very good at it, how can I promote by creations?

I’m one of the most created soapstone sculptures and carvers out there. I’ve only been at it for a few years, yet I can already hyold my own with the best of the best. However, I lack ideas on how to promote and sell my art. This is not a cheap hobby and I need to recoup my losses with some serious sales.

I tried ebay AND FORGET ABOUT IT! Ebay is the worst for self promoting artists. Buyers take advantage of you and the selling prices are a joke and barely even covered my materials. Where else can I try?

try www.deviantart.com
and post here a link to your creations