From scintillating white granites to brilliant serpentines - reds, greens, maroons, greys, yellows, and vibrant oranges - the stone of Zimbabwe is a visual catalog of incredible mineral wealth. More than 250 specific ores and combinations of serpentine have been identified in Zimbabwe. It is the complex combination of these minerals that create the colorful palette so unique to Zimbabwean carving stone.

The most common carving material is serpentine, at 2.0 to 5.5 on the Mohs hardness scale. The much harder granites, and ancient brilliant green verdite(3.6 billion years old), approach 9.0- a hardness rivaling that of rubies. Verdite, also known as Africa's Green Gold, is particularly prized by some artists for its rich, deep emerald color and swirling striations.

Many of the carving stones come from the Nyanga Mountains or near The Great Dyke, a volcanic ridge running 310 miles through the countryside and the longest linear mass of volcanic rock in the world. The 2.5 billion-year-old hills of The Great Dyke are laced with chrome, platinum, gold, copper, emeralds, and other precious metals. Heat and pressure have been applied to this ancient rock mass over the years, creating unusual mineral assemblages that are reflected in the tremendous variety of colors, shadings, and combinations of stone. Once believed to be the repository of the wealth of legendary Ophir, the dyke never yielded the dreamed-of mountains of gold. However, exquisite carving stone is plentiful in this region.

After quarrying the raw stone with pickaxe and pry bar, carvers begin the creation process with handmade tools to release the spirit trapped within the stone.