Featured Zimbabwe soapstone carvings

I found these carvings at a yard sale this morning, and the lady selling them said that they are soapstone carvings from Zimbabwe. But I was wondering if anyone on here would have any more information about them, like when they might have been made and why there appears to be a difference in quality and stone. The larger one is smoother and much heavier than the smaller one. The smaller one is 6.75 in tall and the larger one is 7.75 in tall. There are no marks on the bottom so anything you guys could tell me would be great! Thanks!

 

I think they are great. These are popular souvenirs from Zimbabwe, always nicely made and full of character.
The difference comes from different talent, and availability of the stone.

 

Both nice....the smaller one is superior , but both could be by the same hand....or same family.
There are some African stone carvings by certain artists that go for big money...too bad these aren't signed.......they should be !!

Henry Munyaradzi was a Zimbabwean sculptor. The sculptural movement of which he was part is usually referred to as "Shona sculpture" (see Shona art and Art of Zimbabwe), although some of its recognised members are not ethnically Shona. He worked initially at the Tengenenge Sculpture Community, 150 km north of Harare near Guruve, which he joined in 1967. In that Community, and ultimately in the wider world of lovers of Zimbabwean art, he was known simply as 'Henry'.

 

The 2 seated men are not Henry's.......
sorry for any confusion..

 

No I understand you were referring to the style of his work.

 

And a note on soapstone: the general term soapstone or steatite is used for a number of rocks found around the world (to be technical,"soapstone is composed dominantly of talc, with varying amounts of chlorite and amphiboles, typically tremolite, anthophyllite, and cummingtonite, and trace to minor iron-chromium oxides.")
In simpler terms, soapstone is highly variable depending on the percentage of talc, and what other minerals are mixed with the talc. It can be quite hard, or very soft, and has no fixed Mohs hardness, because the percentage of talc can vary from as low as 30% to as high as 80%. A common type found in Kenya (and also used for sculpture) is nearly white, though often found with reddish coloring due to iron oxides. In the US, common types are grey to greenish, and may either be quite uniform in color or speckled in appearance, and may or may not show streaks of lighter or darker colors.

 

IIRC the shona carvings started in the 1980s. The early stuff was fairly simple, but it sold like hotcakes. These look a lot more sophisticated.

 

Are they signed? They also do similar carvings in wood. This one of mine is signed.

 

Unfortunately, I don't see a signature anywhere. There are definitely no marks on the bottom. Would a signature be hidden somewhere on the actual carving?

 

No idea, mine is signed on the shoulder so not hard to find. Is that thing on the ground under the smaller figure anything?

 

There are several, I think those are his tools.

 

Ya those are his tools. I looked all over them, and I cannot find any signatures anywhere unfortunately.