Statuettes of Zodiac (twelve)

The zodiac in astrology is the name given to the celestial sphere which surrounds the ecliptic and which contains the 12 constellations through which the sun appears to travel in the course of a year. Whilst the western zodiac contains images of men and women as well as animals, the Chinese zodiac contains only animals.
The chinese have the oldest calendar on earth, based on the legend in which creatures of earth fell out with each other and the Chinese god, the Emperor Jade, decided to give a year to each creature. A race was organised to see which animal would have which year . Twelve animals ran, and the first home was the rat, followed by the buffalo, tiger rabbit, dragon, snake, horse goat, monkey cockerel, dog and pig.
Each of these animals or their corresponding character is attributed powers or influence to which Oriental peoples give considerable importance at decisive moments in their lives, such as marriage, weddings, important business deals stc.