Colima Pottery Standing Female Figure
Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, Coahuayana Valley type, Protoclassic Period, ca. 100 BCE to 250 CE. A lovely handmade ceramic figure of flat form depicting an avian-esque female slightly squatting with broad shoulders, bent legs, and long arms falling parallel to her body. Nude for all but two circular earrings, a collar necklace, and headdress with a loop design, her long head displays slit eyes, arched eye brows, a prominent beak-like nose, and a smiling mouth. Two short braids fall along her neck. A lustrous stone burnish beautifully highlights the natural sienna-hued surface of this exemplary piece from Colima culture. Size: 2.25" L x 1.75" W (5.7 cm x 4.4 cm); 6.25" H (15.9 cm) on included custom stand.
Clay figures like this one are the only remains that we have today of a sophisticated and unique culture in West Mexico - they made no above-ground monuments or sculptures, at least that we know of, which is in strong contrast to developments elsewhere in ancient Mesoamerica. Instead, their tombs were their lasting works of art: skeletons arrayed radially with their feet positioned inward, and clay offerings, like this one, placed alongside the walls facing inward, near the skulls. A large effigy like this one most likely would have flanked the entrance to a tomb in a way that archaeologists have interpreted as guarding. Some scholars have interpreted these dynamic sculptures of the living as a strong contrast to the skeletal remains whose space they shared, as if they mediated between the living and the dead.
A nearly identical figure of smaller scale can be found at the Davis Museum at Wellesley College under accession number 1986.151.
Provenance: Private New York Collector from 1966
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#159206
Condition Report: Repaired from several pieces with some break lines and adhesive material visible. Small nick to back. Nice earthen deposits and manganese throughout.
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Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, Coahuayana Valley type, Protoclassic Period, ca. 100 BCE to 250 CE. A lovely handmade ceramic figure of flat form depicting an avian-esque female slightly squatting with broad shoulders, bent legs, and long arms falling parallel to her body. Nude for all but two circular earrings, a collar necklace, and headdress with a loop design, her long head displays slit eyes, arched eye brows, a prominent beak-like nose, and a smiling mouth. Two short braids fall along her neck. A lustrous stone burnish beautifully highlights the natural sienna-hued surface of this exemplary piece from Colima culture. Size: 2.25" L x 1.75" W (5.7 cm x 4.4 cm); 6.25" H (15.9 cm) on included custom stand.
Clay figures like this one are the only remains that we have today of a sophisticated and unique culture in West Mexico - they made no above-ground monuments or sculptures, at least that we know of, which is in strong contrast to developments elsewhere in ancient Mesoamerica. Instead, their tombs were their lasting works of art: skeletons arrayed radially with their feet positioned inward, and clay offerings, like this one, placed alongside the walls facing inward, near the skulls. A large effigy like this one most likely would have flanked the entrance to a tomb in a way that archaeologists have interpreted as guarding. Some scholars have interpreted these dynamic sculptures of the living as a strong contrast to the skeletal remains whose space they shared, as if they mediated between the living and the dead.
A nearly identical figure of smaller scale can be found at the Davis Museum at Wellesley College under accession number 1986.151.
Provenance: Private New York Collector from 1966
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#159206
Condition Report: Repaired from several pieces with some break lines and adhesive material visible. Small nick to back. Nice earthen deposits and manganese throughout.
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Time, Location
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