A new carving from the workshop of Andy Peters
A personal piece that Andy has altered to represent the Roman goddess ‘Fortuna’ . The figure is ‘loosely’ based on a Dutch stern carving from the 1600’s
The Roman Goddess Fortuna
Goddess of fortune known to the Greeks as ‘Tyche’ daughter of the Titan, Oceanus and his consort Tethys.
From her hand came riches and poverty, pleasures and misfortunes, blessings and pain. She is often represented with a winged cupid at her feet and dispensing bounteous fruits from
a horn of plenty.
Always represented with different attributes, Fortuna with a rudder, was conceived as the divinity guiding and conducting the affairs of the world. With a ball she represents the varying unsteadiness of fortune. With the horn of Amalthea she was the symbol of the plentiful gifts of fortune.
Figureheads were rarely carved from a single block of wood, which would be prone to splitting as it dried, offering little stability or strength. By laminating sections of wood, these problems could be overcome, with the added advantages of less waste, and the ability to choose the direction of grain to suit the composition.
The figurehead has therefore been constructed in this traditional manner, from redwood pine, taking advantage of grain direction and cutting out the less durable sap wood wherever possible.
Read more about the Ships Carver, Andy Peters
Visit his website at Maritima Woodcarving
