In the Haida legendary belief about creation, it is dark in the beginning.
Everybody has to walk, including cunning and resourceful Raven.
Raven learns that "The-Old-Man-Who-Walks-Everywhere" has all the light in a hidden box.
By trickery, Raven discovers the location of the box and steals it.
I thought about this for a very long time. I realized that I could illustrate some parts of the belief.
Took quite a while to see these things in the wood. That's how and what I carve.
Picture #1, about 9" tall, western red cedar. The box is a 1" cube iron pyrite crystal as are Raven's glittering eyes.
Picture #2, Raven has replaced 6 stars (quartz inlay) in the night sky and the moon (bottom/abalone shell inlay).
Raven is squinting in the hot sunlight (Calcite cabochon), 20" x 24", beak 9", flames spreading out. The sun will go in the night sky
at the top. Mussel shell eyes.
Picture #3, With the sun back in the sky, it is light for the first time. Raven pauses to study its reflection in the water.