Fetish-Frog TB01b

This trackable is unusual for its longevity and movement. In the six-year period, 2010-15, the owner released a total of 2168 trackables in the United States (96%) and Europe (4%). This trackable is one of the 5% of the total that circulated for at least 5 years and had been moved at least 25 times.  That is a target rate of at least five drops per year for five years, or a drop every 73 days.  As of 3-Aug-21 it had survived for 9.1 years and had been moved by 34 cachers, for an average release every 97 days. Keep it moving!

Please drop it in a Premium Member only OR a rural cache near a busy trail or road. Do not place it in an urban cache or abandon it at a caching event where there is no security.  Transport the bug in the original plastic bag for as long as the bag lasts; the bag keeps the trackable clean, protects the number and prevents tangling with other items.  Otherwise, take the trackable anywhere you wish.  No permission is needed to leave the U.S.

I have a small collection of animal fetish carvings. This is one of a series of travel bugs showing some of my favorite pieces.

Fetishes are an animals or figures carved from natural materials-- stone, minerals, gems, shell, antler, wood, amber, coral, fossil ivory and probably many more. Most of mine are quite small, less than two inches in height or length. Most of my collection is from Zuni artisans (New Mexico), but I also have items from carvers in other western states, including Alaska.

The original fetishes were probably some items that just resembled something, a bird maybe, and mystical powers were often ascribed to it. Using primitive tools the distinguishing features were often embellished. Over centuries there became specialists in fetish carving and it eventually grew into an art form. Leekya Deyuse (a Zuni), made jewelry and fetishes in the 1920s and some of his fetish necklaces are now valued at more than $20,000. However, the average cost per piece in my collection is probably around $65. While many still believe in the power of fetishes, in the present time most them are for sale to tourists and collectors. If you doubt this, just go to the shops in Zuni (and elsewhere) and note the mass production using grinding wheels, belt sanders and Dremel tools.

Zunis believe that animals, as well as inanimate objects and the forces of nature, have a spirit force, which can either help or hurt man. It is believed that the carved animal fetishes host that spiritual force and, if treated properly, will help their owners to overcome the problems facing them. The frog is the provider of rain during droughts.

My collection has more frogs than any other animal but it is not because I have any special attachment to them. Many carvers produce frogs, but my fetishes are almost exclusively from the Laate family. They are carved from unusual materials and fixed in unusual poses.