Kisii Soapstone Cat Dish

Beautifully hand carved, finished, etched, painted and polished, this item comes direct from the makers in Tabaka (pronounced "tah-bah-kah"), Kisii County, Kenya. (Pushpin shown for scale.)

Soapstone is found only in the Candian Arctic and southwestern Kenya. Though the Kisii tribe migrated to the area only within the past two centuries, archaeologists have confirmed that people have been working this soapstone source as early as 1,500 BCE.

For centuries, fathers have passed down their carving skills to their sons. They rough out each design outdoors under open straw-roof workshops using an array of chisels, hammers, and other metal tools. They ply their trade largely in silence, but are approachable and glad to answer questions about their craft and some even give classes to visitors who wish to fashion an item themselves.

After the men have produced the rough designs the women assemble indoors on a wooden floor in circles to sand, paint, etch, and polish each item -- and enjoy sharing news and gossip and having a good laugh as they work.

Finihsed the items are inspected for quality. Boxes of finished but unsatisfactory objects line the floors, next to hundreds, sometimes thousands of identical items destined to be carefully wrapped with upcycled cardboard and twine for export by the container load by rail and sea to the U.S and Europe and beyond where buyers, from Ten Thousand Villages to Walmart.

The owner of the establishment we frequent has become a friend; our nearby apartment is teeming with the wonderful work of many neighbors' hands.