Ram Alebrije – Zapotec Toná Borrego Cimarron – Native Carving Signed by Aucensio Medina

This painstakingly detailed bighorn sheep ram is exquisitely carved and painted by by master alebrije artisan Ezequiel Aucensio Medina Solís from San Pedro Ixtlahuaca in the Central Valley region of Oaxaca. It is made of willow wood that grows in the valley.

Its colors are truly stunning in person. It is a one of a kind, hand-carved and painted from the imagination of the artist. More photos and/or videos available upon request.

Human cultures in the past believed in the existence of a duality between man and nature, in which a person might adopt the attributes, traits, or abilities of an animal with whom they shared a spiritual connection. This isn’t unique to Oaxaca. Egyptian, Sioux, Apache, and First Nation peoples of current-day Canada all shared similar beliefs.
Toná was the name the Zapotecs gave to the guardian animal, and it was identified with each individual from the day of their birth. When a child was born, the father drew a circle of lime and mezcal at the house’s entrance to learn the child’s toná.

The circle was left overnight, and the scent of it attracted spirits in the form of animals. The father would go outside the next morning and look for the animal’s tracks that had been protecting the entrance all night. Throughout the child’s existence, the animal that corresponds to those tracks would be the child’s protective toná.
Still in existence today is a Zapotec calendar that recognizes 20 tonás which include the jaguar, the eagle, the serpent, the frog, the dog, the hummingbird, the owl, the turtle, the mockingbird, the iguana, the possum, the chameleon, and many more.

This stunning ram is made in the fashion to honor the traditional Zapotec toná. It is intricately painted in beautiful vibrant colors, and would look amazing on display in your home or office.

We have been blessed to meet a few extremely talented artisans dotted around the Oaxacan valley. We work directly with them to allow them to gain the highest possible price for their work, and to give us a chance to commission pieces. We want you to know that we strongly believe in a fair and living wage for these amazing artists. We never haggle price. This means sometimes we miss out on amazing pieces that we cannot afford, but we can sleep at night knowing that we aren’t asking artists to put weeks and months into pieces that don’t produce weeks and months worth of wage for them.