Mixtec-Aztec Cholulteca Ware, Eagle Head Tripod, Manuscript-Style Paint
Pre-Columbian, Mexico, Puebla, Mixtec-Aztec, ca. 1200–1521 CE. A trio of eagles carries this bowl on their beaks. Each integral tripod support is modeled as a raptor's head, the hooked bill washed in orange-red, the great oval eye ringed with fine hatching, and the crown feathered in delicate brown line work. The vessel above takes a pinched tricorn form, its rim banded in red, its exterior wrapped with two registers of semiabstract eye elements set between scrolled cartouches in cream, orange, and dark brown slips. The Mixteca-Puebla painting tradition supplied this vocabulary of stepped, scrolled, and ocular motifs, executed here with the precision of a manuscript page. Vessels of this refinement served elite feasting and offering, their avian legs likely invoking the eagle as solar and warrior emblem. Size: 7" Diam x 8" H (17.8 cm Diam x 20.3 cm H).
The Mixteca-Puebla stylistic horizon, centered on Cholula and the Mixtec highlands, produced the most prized polychrome ceramics of Late Postclassic Mesoamerica. Spanish sources report that Motecuhzoma II would eat from nothing but Cholulteca ware, and its distribution reached far beyond Puebla through tribute and long-distance exchange. The painters drew on the same iconographic canon as the Mixtec screenfold codices, so the scrolls, eye elements, and stepped frets on vessels of this class are legible as a shared symbolic script rather than mere ornament.
The eagle (cuauhtli in Nahuatl) stood among the most charged of those signs: a solar being, the day-sign of the fourth position, and the emblem of one of the two great Aztec warrior societies. Supporting a serving vessel on three eagle heads placed the diner, quite literally, above the sun's own bird.
Provenance: Private New England Collection, acquired from Binoche Auction, 2/11/2022, lot 70. Ex. private American collection, acquired 2000. Ex. Ancient Art of the New World, New York, 1990. Ex. Joel Cooner, Dallas, TX.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73053
Condition
The bowl is repaired from approximately seven large original pieces with restoration over the break lines.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Sale price
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
Pre-Columbian, Mexico, Puebla, Mixtec-Aztec, ca. 1200–1521 CE. A trio of eagles carries this bowl on their beaks. Each integral tripod support is modeled as a raptor's head, the hooked bill washed in orange-red, the great oval eye ringed with fine hatching, and the crown feathered in delicate brown line work. The vessel above takes a pinched tricorn form, its rim banded in red, its exterior wrapped with two registers of semiabstract eye elements set between scrolled cartouches in cream, orange, and dark brown slips. The Mixteca-Puebla painting tradition supplied this vocabulary of stepped, scrolled, and ocular motifs, executed here with the precision of a manuscript page. Vessels of this refinement served elite feasting and offering, their avian legs likely invoking the eagle as solar and warrior emblem. Size: 7" Diam x 8" H (17.8 cm Diam x 20.3 cm H).
The Mixteca-Puebla stylistic horizon, centered on Cholula and the Mixtec highlands, produced the most prized polychrome ceramics of Late Postclassic Mesoamerica. Spanish sources report that Motecuhzoma II would eat from nothing but Cholulteca ware, and its distribution reached far beyond Puebla through tribute and long-distance exchange. The painters drew on the same iconographic canon as the Mixtec screenfold codices, so the scrolls, eye elements, and stepped frets on vessels of this class are legible as a shared symbolic script rather than mere ornament.
The eagle (cuauhtli in Nahuatl) stood among the most charged of those signs: a solar being, the day-sign of the fourth position, and the emblem of one of the two great Aztec warrior societies. Supporting a serving vessel on three eagle heads placed the diner, quite literally, above the sun's own bird.
Provenance: Private New England Collection, acquired from Binoche Auction, 2/11/2022, lot 70. Ex. private American collection, acquired 2000. Ex. Ancient Art of the New World, New York, 1990. Ex. Joel Cooner, Dallas, TX.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73053
Condition
The bowl is repaired from approximately seven large original pieces with restoration over the break lines.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Sale price
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
