ADVENT CALENDAR 2022

Carved in wood, Joseph stands and Mary kneels, both looking at Baby Jesus in a manger. Native animals surround them. — Nativity carved from Afrormosia wood by Van Nyasulu, Nkhata-Bay, Republic of Malawi, 2017. Glencairn Museum collection, Bryn Athyn, PA. To view a zoomable version of this Nativity on Google Arts & Culture, **click on the image**.

4. NATIVITY WITH AFRICAN ANIMALS

This Nativity, carved from Afrormosia wood (African teak), depicts the Holy Family beneath a hut. Instead of the ox and donkey familiar from European Nativity scenes, the family is surrounded by animals native to Malawi: an African buffalo, a leopard, a lion, a giraffe, an elephant, and a rhinoceros.

Malawi is a country in southeastern Africa. Approximately three-fourths of the population identify as Christian. Artist Van Nyasulu, from Nkhata-Bay, was taught how to carve by his father, Symon Nyasulu, beginning at the age of six. Van trained under Symon until he was fourteen, when his father passed away, and then he began carving full-time on his own.

Visit us at Follow the Star: A 2022 Advent Calendar.