Zimbabwean Sculpture Stone Profiles Part 1 : Springstone

A very hard serpentine with high iron content and a fine texture, no cleavages, hard and firm offering a good resistance to the sculptor.

Springstone has a rich outer “blanket” of reddish brown oxidised rock. They emerge from the quarry like sculptures created by nature millions of years ago and are often a source of inspiration to the artist.

There are a few mines where this stone is found, but Guruve, in the north, is where springstone is mined.

A beautiful dark stone, it polishes to a high shine because of its density. As with most other stones that are mined for the purpose of sculpting, this stone is mined by hand on communal lands.