If you ever pass through Tahiti, there are encounters that stay with you. Derry is one of them. This sculptor and engraver from the Marquesas works bone and wood with a precision that commands respect… and with a lot of heart. His hands tell stories. They transmit. They carry within them what we call mana — that invisible energy connecting people, the land, the ancestors, and tradition.

I went to visit him at his home in Titioro.

A deeply rooted craftsmanship

In Tahiti and Her Islands, sculpture is more than just art — it’s a living memory. It has passed down through the ages, carved in wood, stone, bone, or mother-of-pearl. Every piece once served a purpose: to communicate with the gods, to tell a legend, to signify social rank, or simply to honor the sacred bond between man and nature.

Did you know there’s a very rare volcanic stone that’s also sculpted? It’s called “flower stone” (or garnet phonolite), and it’s found only on Ua Pou in the Marquesas, and in a few other very remote places in the world. A true mineral treasure.

Mana, symbols, and soul-infused materials

Materials aren’t chosen at random.

• Toa wood (ironwood) symbolizes strength.
• Bone carries the memory of the ancestors.
• Mother-of-pearl reflects the lagoon’s light.
• Pig or shark teeth, horn — all these materials give meaning to the jewelry they become.

And what about the engraved motifs? Spirals, tiki figures, sacred lines… each design carries a message, a connection to the past, to the sacred, to nature. That’s where mana comes to life.