There are many Native American stories about North America being Turtle Island, and if you click on the link you can read about just one of them by an Ojibway elder. It's a good story! This turtle by Navajo carver, Jayne Quam, has a whole world inlaid on its back. The stones creating the moon, star, mountains and more are chrysocolla, azurite, turquoise, Mother of Pearl, tijilite, jet, dolomite, and shell, and it has turquoise eyes. The body of the turtle is dolomite. "Jayne Quam" is etched into the bottom. Such a treasure!
Size: 1" H x 2.375" L x 1.875" W
Turtles have their own homes on their backs which means that wherever they are, they are home. They are associated with safety. When attacked they retreat into their shells, although some turtles have strong enough mouths to snap a finger. For most Native American nations in North America, turtles represent Mother Earth. Every turtle shell has 13 sections on top which some Native Americans say represent the 13 moons of each year.
Traditionally, Zuni carvings are symbolically fed cornmeal. Each Zuni fetish comes in a box with a descriptive card and a tiny bit of corn meal to tide them over until they reach you.