Choose between the Man in the canoe or the Eskimo man and woman...There appears to be descrepncies on the web about these sculptures, some sites call these carving soap stone, while others call it a type of cast material. It bears the WE A Wolf Original sticker on bottom of the man on the canoe. Here is what I found:
https://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/173879-wolf-original-cast-sculpture-painted-inu
Wolf, Boma, Thorn, Aardvark, [Pearlite, Jolin], etc. - Manufactured in the style of an Inuit carving, they appear to be made of soapstone, but are, in fact, molded figures. Several companies make handmade figures like this in Canada: Wolf, Boma, Thorn, Aardvark, etc.
From the manufacturer's retail tag:
"Edmund Wolf has studied and sculpted a full range of North American wildlife. Every sculpture is precisely reproduced in a composition of stone and marble and then hand finished, resulting in the handsome figurines known as Wolf Sculptures. Only pieces having the marking 'WE' are original Wolf Sculptures. To maintain the beauty of this stonework (once a year) use a light coat of fine furniture paste wax".
[from the text of an eBay ad for 3 small "Wolf Originals", Aug. 29, 2005, eBay dealer mbMax.] eBay shows many listings for soapstone... Steve. 8/31/05 (more about 'WE' Wolf Originals)
WE Wolf Originals - The Answer - I somehow managed to stumble on your web site and found several requests for information regarding Wolf Originals (WE) carvings. Even though their subject matter often depicts Inuit life and people, they are not produced by Inuits, not hand carved, and not made of soapstone. They are produced by combining pulverized rock dust with a kind of resin which is poured into a mold. They would qualify as souvenir art - very cute, but not authentic. Aside from the WE stamp, there are other characteristics that differentiate them from real Inuit rock carvings. They have a very different look and feel than rock. They are not as heavy for their size, not as cold to the touch, and they have kind of a waxy feel to them. They are also pretty uniform in color (except for the wash that lightens parts of them) and they lack the imperfections, color variations, and occlusions found in most rock. There were a variety of companies that produced these pieces to sell to tourists -- much to the distress of Inuit artists, because they're often misrepresented as "genuine Inuit art." I'd estimate their value between $5 and $25 -- hope this helps. Judy. 4/8/04
