"Three Wise Monkeys" Serpentine Shona Stone Sculpture Hand Carved in Zimbabwe!Product DescriptionA wonderful Shona sculpture from Zimbabwe of three wise monkeys hand carved from a beautiful piece of Serpentine.Together they embody theproverbialprinciple to"see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil". The three monkeys areMizaru, covering his eyes, who sees no evil;Kikazaru, covering his ears, who hears no evil; andIwazaru, covering his mouth, who speaks no evil.Gallery retail on this would be over $350. Weighs approximately 2.08lbs.Serpentine stone boasts an array of colors that cannot be described. No one stone is alike. The reason for this is the many mineral inclusions within the stone giving its unique color variation. The name "Serpentine" comes from an association with the characteristics of a serpents skin. Serpentine is the most commonly used stone because of the varying hardness for both master sculptors, as well as his apprentice. Serpentine rates between 2.5 to 5.5, depending on mineral inclusions, on the universally used Mohs hardness scale,a diamond rates at 10.Read more about Shona sculpture below and how it is unique to Zimbabwe. Thanks for looking and helping to support the artists.Three Wise MonkeysFrom Wikipedia:Thethree wise monkeys(Japanese:三猿,san'enorsanzaru, or三匹の猿,sanbiki no saru, literally "three monkeys"), sometimes called thethree mystic apes,are a pictorialmaxim. Together they embody theproverbialprinciple to"see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil". The three monkeys areMizaru, covering his eyes, who sees no evil;Kikazaru, covering his ears, who hears no evil; andIwazaru, covering his mouth, who speaks no evil. Sometimes there is a fourth monkey depicted with the three others; the last one,Shizaru, symbolizes the principle of"do no evil". He may be shown crossing his arms.There are various meanings ascribed to the monkeys and the proverb including associations with being of good mind, speech and action. In the Western world the phrase is often used to refer to those who deal with impropriety bylooking the other way, refusing to acknowledge it, or feigning ignorance.[citation needed]InEnglish, the monkeys' names are often given asMizaru,Mikazaru,andMazaru,but the last two names were corrupted from the Japanese originalsOriginKōshin scroll with the three monkeysA World War II poster directed at participants in theManhattan ProjectThe source that popularized this pictorialmaximis a 17th century carving over a door of the famousTōshō-gūshrine inNikkō,Japan. The carvings at Toshogu Shrine were carved by Hidari Jingoro, and believed to have incorporatedConfucius’s Code of Conduct, using the monkey as a way to depict man’s life cycle. There are a total of 8 panels, and the iconic three wise monkeys picture comes from panel 2. The philosophy, however, probably originally came to Japan with aTendai-Buddhistlegend, from China in the 8th century (Nara Period). It has been suggested that the figures represent the three dogmas of the so-called middle school of the sect.InChinese, a similar phrase exists in theAnalects of Confuciusfrom 2nd to 4th century B.C.: "Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary to propriety" (非禮勿視, 非禮勿聽, 非禮勿言, 非禮勿動).It may be that this phrase was shortened and simplified after it was brought into Japan.It is through theKōshinrite offolk religionthat the most significant examples are presented. The Kōshin belief or practice is a Japanese folk religion with ChineseTaoismorigins and ancientShintoinfluence. It was founded by Tendai Buddhist monks in the late 10th century. A considerable number of stone monuments can be found all over the eastern part of Japan aroundTokyo. During the later part of theMuromachi period, it was customary to display stone pillars depicting the three monkeys during the observance of Kōshin.Though the teaching had nothing to do with monkeys, the concept of the three monkeys originated from a simple play on words. The saying in Japanese is "mizaru, kikazaru, iwazaru" (見ざる,聞かざる,言わざる, literally "don't see, don't hear, don't speak". However,-zaru, an archaic negative verb conjugation, is pronounced the same aszaru, thevocalizedform ofsaru(猿?), "monkey", so the saying can also be interpreted as the names of three monkeys.It is also possible that the three monkeys came from a more central root than a simple play on words.[contradiction]The shrine at Nikko is a Shinto shrine, and the monkey is an extremely important being in theShintoreligion.[citation needed]The monkey is believed to be the messenger of the Hie Shinto shrines, which also have connections with Tendai Buddhism. There are even important festivals that are celebrated during theyear of the monkey(occurring every twelve years) and a special festival is celebrated every sixteenth year of theKōshin."The Three Mystic Apes" (Sambiki Saru) were described as "the attendants of Saruta Hito no Mikoto or Kōshin, the God of the Roads".The Kōshin festival was held on the 60th day of the calendar. It has been suggested that during the Kōshin festival, according to old beliefs, one’s bad deeds might be reported to heaven "unless avoidance actions were taken…." It has been theorized that the three Mystic Apes, Not Seeing, Hearing, or Speaking, may have been the "things that one has done wrong in the last 59 days."According to other accounts, the monkeys caused theSanshiandTen-Teinot to see, say or hear the bad deeds of a person. TheSanshi(三尸?)are three worms living in everyone's body. The Sanshi keep track of the good deeds and particularly the bad deeds of the person they inhabit. Every 60 days, on the night calledKōshin-Machi(庚申待?), if the person sleeps, the Sanshi will leave the body and go toTen-Tei(天帝?), the Heavenly God, to report about the deeds of that person. Ten-Tei will then decide to punish bad people, making them ill, shortening their time alive, and in extreme cases putting an end to their lives. Those believers of Kōshin who have reason to fear will try to stay awake during Kōshin nights. This is the only way to prevent the Sanshi from leaving their body and reporting to Ten-Tei.An ancient representation of the 'no see, no hear, no say, no do' can be found in four golden figurines in theZelnik Istvan Southeast Asian Gold Museum. These golden statues date from the 6th to 8th century. The figures look like tribal human people with not very precise body carvings and strong phallic symbols.This set indicates that the philosophy comes from very ancient roots.Meaning of the proverbJust as there is disagreement about the origin of the phrase, there are differing explanations of the meaning of "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."Three wise monkeys on the beach in Barcelona.In Japan the proverb is simply regarded as a JapaneseGolden Rule.Early associations of the three monkeys with the fearsome six-armed deityVajrakilayalink the proverb to the teaching of Buddhism that if we do not hear, see or talk evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil (referThree Vajra).In many interpretations it can be seen as a way to avoid spreading evil. Do not listen to evil things so they do not influence you. Do not read things that are evil or look upon evil things so they do not influence you, and lastly do not repeat verbally evil things so they cannot be spread about.Another interpretation is a warning or suggestion to not "see" or "hear" evil in places where there in fact may not be any evil present (the speaking of evil is self explanatory here). The point being that evil may not exist in the world except for how we may choose to perceive it or act it in the world through our own "speech" and "actions" (the sometimes considered fourth monkey).[edit]Cultural influencesBrass castingThe three wise monkeys, and the associated proverb, are known throughoutAsiaand in theWestern world. They have been a motif in pictures, such as theukiyo-e(Japanese woodblock printings) byKeisai Eisen.Mahatma Gandhi's one notable exception to his lifestyle of non-possession was a small statue of the three monkeys. Today, a larger representation of the three monkeys is prominently displayed at theSabarmati AshraminAhmedabad,Gujarat, where Gandhi lived from 1915–1930 and from where he departed on his famoussalt march.In the 1968 film Planet of the Apes, the three judges at Taylor's tribunal assume the traditional wise monkeys pose as Cornelius and Dr. Zira present a version of the Theory of Evolution.The maxim inspired an award-winning 2008 Turkish film by directorNuri Bilge CeylancalledThree Monkeys(Üç Maymun).Shona ArtFrom Wikipedia:Shona artis contemporary stone sculpture fromZimbabwe. African stone sculpture is not traditional, although much of its subject matter has traditional roots. The art movement began around 1956 and was initiated byFrank McEwenwho at the time was the Director of The National Gallery of Rhodesia.During its early years of growth, it was described as an art renaissance, an art phenomenon and a miracle. Critics and collectors could not understand how an art genre had developed with such vigour, spontaneity and originality in an area of Africa which had none of the great sculptural heritage of West Africa and had previously been described in terms of the visual arts as artistically barren.Fifteen years of sanctions against the country obscured works from the Western world (apart from highly acclaimed exhibitions organised by Frank Mc Ewen in major museums such as Musee dArt Moderne, Paris; Musee Rodin, Paris; and the Institute of Contemporary Art, London). Yet these years also witnessed the honing of technical skills, the deepening of expressive power, the use of harder and different stones and the creation of many outstanding works.Since independence in 1980, the sculpture has been e
