Chonta Daga

Chonta Daga

Curanderos (healers) in northern coastal and Andean Peru used and continue to use staves like this, carved from Amazonian Chonta Wood, in their ceremonies.  The hard, dark wood, from the jungles across the Andes, imparts strength and protection during healing ceremonies and staves are sprinkled with Florida Water and passed down the left side of the petitioner, then set in the ground or on the floor upright in front of the mesa.  They're often called dagas, daggars, because they cut away disease-causing energies.

This Chonta Daga is with the depiction of a "Condor".  The Condor is hand carved and made of ( Serpentine )  "The stone of Machu Pichu" and Chonta Wood with a leather wrapping under the Condor.

The Chonta Daga measures 15 inches long