This Alaskan Dancing Bear is masterfully carved of Steatite (“soapstone”) stone. Signed. 7.5 x 3.25 x 4, priced at $345.

The dancing bear is beautifully carved, and appears so light on his feet and joyful. The carving balances on one foot, it’s wonderful. Stop by the gallery and see it in person!

Check out the quality of the stone selection. This is a really masterful piece, in excellent condition. Please click through the photos to see all the angles and the authenticity sticker, and artist marks.

The polar bear could be one of the ancestors, and while the shaman is calling him, she/he is playing drums and dancing. Most of the times, when Inuit artists represent a dancing bear; this is precisely the moment when the shaman and the bear are getting connected thus, their spirit and their body merging together.

There is not only one explanation about the dancing bear through Inuit art and culture. Actually, the most popular signification of this topic is linked to shamanism and spirits world. According to the Inuit thought, the universe is inhabited by human beings (humans, animals, vegetables), deceased’s and spirits (tuurnngait) each who live in different but inter-penetrating worlds. Every human being is provided with an anirniq “breathing, breath of life” which, when the subject dies integrates a new animal or human body. The conception of the Inuit world represents a continuum, where every element is a part of a whole. Thank you inuitartzone.com