Large Candy Skeleton

This skeleton is carved from solid wood in Bali and painted by hand in the style of the Mexican calavera, with every bone patterned in bright colour. It is imported by Siesta, a family-run Fair Trade business in Canterbury and a member of BAFTS since the 1990s.

In Mexico, calaveras are the decorated skulls made for Día de Muertos on the first and second of November. The best known are moulded from sugar and iced in bright colours for the ofrendas, the family altars set out to welcome the souls of the dead. The skeleton figures that accompany them, called calacas, are shown dancing, playing music and going about ordinary life, which is why they read as cheerful.

Each skeleton is painted individually, so the colours and patterns vary from one figure to the next.

Painted Wood: Care and Display

Dust the figure with a soft, dry brush or cloth, as water and household sprays can lift hand-applied paint. Display it away from direct sunlight, which fades bright pigments over a season or two, and away from radiators, where dry heat can open cracks in solid wood.

Material: solid wood, hand-painted
Made in: Bali, Indonesia