This huge vintage, solid mahogany, papiere mache mold Santa Claus stand 53 inches tall and was carved the mid 20th centur It is from the remote village of Paete in the Philipine Islands, that began supplying religious carvings for Catholic church needs throughout Asia in the 17th century. Ideal woods for carving were readily available and a flourishing industry developed. By the end of the 19th century, churches all over the world, including Mission Dolores in San Francisco, St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, had received murals, bas reliefs, pulpits, and images from the carvers in Paete. When demands for religious effigies decreased by the 1920's, a new industry developed, creating papier-mâché figures. Local carvers easily made the transition and factories opened to meet the growing demands of Europe and America. Papiere-mache statues, called Taka, were the result. The molds, called Takaan, were carved and images were cast for all occasions and holiday