Secrets:
To honor the 2008 U.S. Presidential election, Master Carver Peter
Calvesbert has carved the Democrat and Republican mascots, both
popularized by 19th century editorial cartoonist Thomas Nast. Peter’s
political animals – “Ebony” the donkey and “Ivory” the elephant - are
stand-alone pieces, but the shape of their bases allows them to face
off in head-to-head battle. At the time of carving, the Democrats were
still undecided who should lead them into the election, so both Barack
and Hillary get a mention in the donkey. However, the letter B is atop
the letter H due to Obama’s lead. The inscriptions on the donkey lid
mark the passing of Humphrey Lyttelton. A famous British jazz
musician, he was also known as chairman of “I’m sorry I haven’t a
clue”, a BBC series describing itself as “an antidote to panel shows”
and simply the funniest thing on radio. It began in 1972 and has
become an English institution.
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