Well, first of all they don't have much to do with rubbing, more correctly they should be called daubings" because of the procedure involved in creating these marvelous art pieces.

In the late seventies, my wife and I were living with our two daughters in the vast rain forest of northern Guatemala, a region known as El Petén. It was the heartland of the Maya people, the area contained literally dozens of so called "lost cities". For a long time we would actually record the marvelous rock carvings (on cloth) called stelae en situ.

But before long none too careful tourists began to take a toll on these monuments. One of the biggest errors lay in the fact that people in a hurry would clean off these moss covered ancient stones with whatever was at hand, sticks or perhaps jack knifes or even machetes. Some of those monuments sustained severe damage. A nose might be pried loose, or perhaps a delicate finger would be damaged in the improper cleaning. Finally, the Guatemalan government took measures to stop the practice of making rubbings from the original carvings.

Accordingly, we set out to make rubbing in a way that would do no damage to the original. Firstly we would haul a generator, and thousands of watts of light into the remote jungle where these great stone carvings were still found. A careful series of photographs were taken. Next, big enlargements were projected onto slabs of mahogany (some measured three by five feet). Now came the hard part. Many careful hours were spent carving out the figures depicted on the originals. No detail was omitted and none was added. Eventually we ended up with some twenty four "rubbing boards" as we call them.

The final stage is done by stretching some form of material (we use mostly a cotton / dracon mixture to assure longevity) is stretched tightly over the face of our carving. Using artists’ oil, and small hard cotton balls contained in silk, layers of paint are carefully built up by hand (in a patting sort of motion) on the material. Great care must be taken at this stage; a little too much paint on the "dauber" can ruin several hours of work. If done carefully the result is a unique work of art.

With each rubbing, we supply as much information as we have on what is shown. Also we recommend the care and protection of your rubbing, as well as recommendations as to framing. With proper care you can be the proud owner of a unique work of art, one that can be handed down for many years.