Medicine Wheel Art Appraisal

Polychrome Hand-Carved Wooden Horse Medicine Wheel Relief Sculpture

This item is a circular relief-carved wooden wall plaque or shield depicting a Native American-inspired Horse Medicine Wheel motif. The piece measures approximately 12 to 15 inches in diameter and is executed on a light-colored wood base, likely basswood or pine, which shows visible chisel and gouge marks across the background. The central composition features four stylized horses in a pinwheel formation, each rendered in a different pigment representing the cardinal directions: a blue horse (North), a yellow/ochre horse (South/East variant), a white/silver horse (West), and a red horse (South). Each horse is uniquely detailed with surface texturing; for example, the yellow horse exhibits a stippled or spotted pattern, while the white horse shows linear flowing mane-like textures. At the absolute center is a smaller medicine wheel divided into four quadrants of white, red, yellow, and blue. The carving demonstrates high-relief techniques where the animal figures overlap each other and the background. The condition appears to be good with a matte finish, though the wood grain shows natural variations and minor surface scuffing characteristic of handcrafted decorative arts. The style is contemporary folk art, likely dating from the late 20th to early 21st century, blending traditional spiritual symbolism with modern woodwork craftsmanship.