Hecate-Inspired Oddity and Altar Piece

Description

Hecate (heh-kuh-tee), according to ancient Greek mythology, was granted great honors and authority after siding with Zeus during the Titanomachy. She is often associated with magic, witchcraft, necromancy, spirits, hounds, crossroads, the night, and the liminal spaces between worlds.
Her influence reaches across the sky, the earth, and the sea, and later traditions also connect her deeply with the underworld and the dead.

Every element in this piece was chosen with intention:

• Dried/preserved orange slices provide a touch of light [magic] and serve as a symbolic torch. Hecate’s darkness is not something to be feared or villainized; the oranges are a reminder that light and darkness exist together. Also, Hecate acted as Persephone’s loyal companion and guide during her journeys to and from the underworld. They are both torch-bearing goddesses.
• Shed skin from our Colombian boa snake, Kiera, honors transformation, renewal, and transitional states.
• Flies (sourced from our yard, already deceased) symbolize death, decay, and necromancy while also representing pollination—a reminder that life and death exist within the same cycle.
• Foraged and preserved hydrangea flowers and a magnolia leaf honor the earth.
• Both bones are vertebrae. The smaller belonged to a rabbit that we processed ourselves. The larger centerpiece came from a coyote (especially fitting for a goddess associated with hounds).
• A real pinecone accents the large bone that it sits below.
• A black obsidian crystal and black moss tie each element together.

The smaller rabbit vertebrae was sourced and processed by us (our family rabbit passed away in 2024, and her bones have made many pieces <3). The larger coyote vertebrae was a gift to us from friends that live on a homestead: exact sourcing unknown.

A combination of UV resin and E6000 glue have been used as adherents. Organics have been dried/preserved in silica gel crystals.

This item does not currently have any wall-mounting hardware attached to it, but the recipient can customize this art piece, if they desire. 🙂

**Please check your local regulations and laws to confirm any specifications about obtaining and keeping animal remains.