The offerings shared below are just a small selection of what is available in our physical gallery shop. Contact Us.
Lance Cheama
is backordered. We will ship it separately when it becomes available.
Award-winning Zuni Pueblo artist Lance Cheama's collectible Lizard has meticulously carved bead-like scales and a beard or frill underneath a raised neck. Piercing eyes from turquoise inlays are ever-alert to danger and a long tail coils with a sense of quick movement. A realistic reptile carved from a perfectly camouflaging Picasso marble that measures about 5 3/4" long, 1" wide and 1 1/4" tall.
Lance Cheama descends from the greater Natewa, the late Dallas Quam and Panteah extended family of Zuni artists. In the 1970's the Cheama family was the first to carve detailed and realistic animal subjects. Lance has taught the art of stone carving to many fellow family members. His latest offering is creatively sculpted from a single variscite specimen showcasing two gorgeous Lizards who share space in the wild. The iguana is beautifully detailed with a dewlap or throat fan and wonderful eyes from verdant malachite inlays. Incised beaded scales and segmented tail whip around on the shell-eyed reptile who runs across the iguana's back. About 2 1/2" long, 5/8" wide and 1/2" tall.
Melvin Sandoval, San Felipe-Zuni
Camouflaging horned Lizard has a fabulously carved crown of horns as it waits for an unsuspecting Harvester red ant meal to walk by. Serpentine was the perfect choice by Melvin Sandoval to sculpt the reptile because a horned lizard's natural dorsal coloring matches the soil and pebbles where it lives. Watchful eyes are etched. About 3 1/2" long, 2 1/4" wide and 1" tall.
Tammy Bellson
Nelson Yatsattie
Horned Lizards have an amazing defense mechanism. Nictating membranes in the corners of their eyes enables them to squirt blood when provoked. They can accurately aim from several feet away at a predator’s eyes or mouth. Thanks to a steady diet of Harvester red ants, the horned lizard's blood contains formic acid that tastes terrible to these predators. Interestingly, the term formica from which the name is derived is the Latin word for ant, as formic acid is contained in ant venom. Nelson Yatsattie's smoothly sculpted Queen's Creek marble horned lizard has turquoise inlaid eyes and sgraffito-etched horns and claws. About 4 3/8" long, 2" wide and 1 1/4" tall.
A wonderful horned Lizard with turquoise eyes has been carved from Hestermanite, an intriguing stone from perhaps the marble family. The overall organic patterns and earth-toned colors of this Hestermanite specimen provide the best camouflage for a horned lizard's desert living. Staying still and remaining motionless is also a helpful defense mechanism. Mouth and claws are sgraffito-etched. About 3 1/4" long, 1 3/4" wide and 1" tall by Nelson Yatsattie.
Cody Chavez
Brian Yatsattie
Terry Wilson, Dine-Zuni
Calbert Bowannie
Absorbing the warm and nourishing Zuni sunshine, Nelson Yatsattie's elongated Lizard ponders the next place to visit, friends to make and insects to eat. Smoothly sculpted from Queen's Creek marble displaying natural rich colors like burgundy hues, this lovely reptile is about 7 1/4" long, 1" wide and 3/4" tall. Eyes are from turquoise inlays and claws are sgraffito-etched. We can help reptiles by keeping downed logs which provide great habitat for them and all kinds of wildlife. Also, planting native grasses and ground cover affords great hiding spots for lizards.
For some Plains Indigenous tribes, Lizards are linked with healing, survival and masculinity. A newborn boy's umbilical cord was sewn into the shape of a lizard to ensure the little one's good health, energy and strength. Nelson Yatsattie's phenomenal reptile duo is masterfully hewn from one rich portion of Picasso marble. Eyes from turquoise inlays convey individuality while tails are lusciously long. These life-like lizards feel like they could scurry off the stone in the blink of an eye. No matter what angle this gorgeous carving is viewed from, there are stunning details and natural colors to behold. Approximately 4 1/4" tall, 3" wide and 2 1/2" deep.
Nelson Yatsattie's Lizard carved from fluorite is smooth, long and sly. This lighting fast reptile measures about 3 1/2" long, 1 1/2" wide by 1" tall, with smart eyes of inlaid turquoise. The carving had curvy minimalistic lines with incised feet. The long tail flips towards the back of the head and incredibly is carved forming an open loop at the back. Lizard medicine helps us remember our dreams and focus on our deepest visions, as a lizard basks in the heat of the sun, quiet yet alert.
Derrick Kaamasee