{"product_id":"carved-dove-white-marble-statue-15cm","title":"Carved Dove White Marble Statue - 15cm","description":"\u003ch3\u003eDescription\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eA dove stands with its tail fanned and its head turned, the body plump and rounded. The bill is fine and pointed, the breast and flank carry incised scale-like feathering, and the fanned tail is cut in fine radiating quills. Each bird stands on its own small integral foot-plate. White marble, neutral and matte, with no veining legible at this small a size. The two versions are not alike, and one bird is what this price buys. One has its wings closed and the other has them raised and spread, so please tell us which pose you would like.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAt Fifteen Centimetres the Tools Change\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eA carving this small is not a big one shrunk; it is a different trade altogether. None of the mallet and chisel work that shapes a life-size animal is any use here - the shock would split the piece - so the whole thing is cut with rotary burrs and rifflers, by hand, under a lens, with the stone held in a padded cradle rather than standing on the floor. The tail quills are the test: each is a groove perhaps a millimetre wide, and there are dozens fanning out from a point, so their spacing has to be set out before any is cut and the burr has to be steered rather than driven. The margin for error is not a few millimetres as it is on a two-tonne bull; it is roughly the width of the line itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNothing else we make is anywhere near this small; the next piece up is more than twice as tall and sixty times the weight. It belongs indoors, on something, at close range. At 15cm it is held in the hand, and it is read on a shelf or a sill, not at distance. A shelf, a sill, a mantel, a desk, a bedside table, a glazed cabinet. It is also the only piece here you can pick up and turn over in your hands, which is worth saying, because the underside and the fanned tail are carved as carefully as the back. The two versions are different birds: one sits with the wings folded and the tail fanned flat, the other lifts both wings. Order twice and pick a version for each if you want the pair.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThe Smallest Thing We Make\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eEight to ten weeks, and most of it is finishing rather than roughing. Working at this size means the tools change entirely, and every cut is made under a lens. A small blank is cut, held in a padded cradle and worked with rotary burrs and rifflers under a lens. The body and head are brought to shape first, then the bill, which is the most fragile part and is left oversized until nearly the end. The incised feathering on breast and flank follows, and the fanned tail quills are set out and cut last of all. One small piece of stone throughout, foot-plate included, with nothing applied. Just 2kg, light enough to carry in one hand, and it stands on its own wherever you set it. Our main studios are in the UK (Birmingham) and Dubai, with additional global workshops.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe very smallest pieces in \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/animal-sculptures\"\u003eanimal sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e belong indoors, among \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/indoor-sculptures\"\u003eindoor sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eSpecification\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003ctable class=\"spec_table\"\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHeight\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e15cm\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBase\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncluded\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMaterial\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHand-Carved Natural Marble\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Giant Sculptures","offers":[{"title":"Version 1","offer_id":53872387326299,"sku":"MST-ANI-146-V1","price":6466.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Version 2","offer_id":53872387359067,"sku":"MST-ANI-146-V2","price":6466.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0869\/3383\/2027\/files\/MST-ANI-146_1.jpg?v=1787590641","url":"https:\/\/giant-sculptures.com\/products\/carved-dove-white-marble-statue-15cm","provider":"Giant Sculptures","version":"1.0","type":"link"}