Carved Solid Wood Monkey Ornament

Some ornaments are content to sit in the middle of a shelf. This one is not. Carved from solid wood in a perched, characterful pose, the monkey is designed to occupy an edge - the lip of a bookshelf, the corner of a mantel, the top of a leaning stack of paperbacks - so that it looks caught mid-thought rather than arranged. At roughly 300g it has real heft in the hand, and the weight is part of the appeal: this is a piece you notice picking up.

It is hand carved and hand finished in a natural wood finish, with the tool work left legible rather than sanded into anonymity. That is what gives the face and the shoulders their expression. Styling it is easy enough; a single figure against plain shelving does more than a crowded arrangement, and it sits comfortably alongside ceramics, brass or stacked books. Turn it slightly off-square to the shelf edge and the silhouette becomes far more interesting.

Because it is worked from natural wood, grain, tone and figure vary from piece to piece, and no two carvings come out identical - small differences in colour and marking are a feature of the material rather than a fault. Keep it away from radiators and direct sunlight, and dust it with a dry cloth rather than a damp one. It is a decorative ornament and not a toy, so keep it out of reach of small children.

• Solid wood monkey figure, hand carved and hand finished
• Weight approximately 300g
• Natural wood finish, supplied in the Natural Wood style
• Perched pose designed to sit on a shelf edge, mantel or stack of books
• Natural wood: grain, tone and figure vary from piece to piece
• Warning: this is not a toy - keep out of reach of small children