Mixtec & Michoacan Redware Tripod Rattle Vessels - Zoomorphic Legs
Pre-Columbian, Mexico, Mixtec and Michoacan, ca. 1200–1500 CE. A pair of burnished redware tripod vessels, each raised on three hollow rattle legs that still sound softly when moved, small ceramic pellets sealed within betraying their function as gentle percussion during use or ceremony. The larger, attributed to the Mixtec of Oaxaca, is a broad flaring bowl whose supports are modeled as stylized birds' heads, their beaks and eyes rendered in low relief, while an incised band of hatching and a matte roundel enliven the exterior and interior. The smaller, from the Michoacan region of west Mexico, is a deeper cup-form basin on tapering legs, its lip finished with a subtle molded rim. Both retain the warm iron-oxide slip and hand-polished surfaces characteristic of Postclassic domestic and mortuary wares, objects that married everyday utility with the quiet music of the rattle. Size: 4" H x 9.6" Diam (10.2 cm H x 24.4 cm Diam).
Tripod rattle vessels were a distinctive West and Central Mexican innovation: the hollow feet were formed as chambers and loaded with fired clay pellets before the leg was sealed, so that lifting, tilting, or setting the vessel down produced a rhythmic sound. Such wares served in both domestic contexts and funerary offerings across the Postclassic period. The zoomorphic supports of the Mixtec example, modeled as avian heads, follow a wider Mesoamerican convention of animating vessel legs with animal forms, lending the object both symbolic resonance and a tactile, sonic dimension.
Provenance: private Los Angeles, California, USA collection of E. Wolf, acquired before 2000.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
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 #203772
Condition
Larger has had one leg reattached with minor chipping along visible break line and small area of restoration to rim. More petite has chipping to rim and two stable hairline fissures extending from rim. Both have have scattered nicks and abrasions to surfaces, commensurate with age. Otherwise, both are intact and very nice with liberal remaining detail. Both still produce a light rattle. Larger has heavy encrustations to feet.
Pre-Columbian, Mexico, Mixtec and Michoacan, ca. 1200–1500 CE. A pair of burnished redware tripod vessels, each raised on three hollow rattle legs that still sound softly when moved, small ceramic pellets sealed within betraying their function as gentle percussion during use or ceremony. The larger, attributed to the Mixtec of Oaxaca, is a broad flaring bowl whose supports are modeled as stylized birds' heads, their beaks and eyes rendered in low relief, while an incised band of hatching and a matte roundel enliven the exterior and interior. The smaller, from the Michoacan region of west Mexico, is a deeper cup-form basin on tapering legs, its lip finished with a subtle molded rim. Both retain the warm iron-oxide slip and hand-polished surfaces characteristic of Postclassic domestic and mortuary wares, objects that married everyday utility with the quiet music of the rattle. Size: 4" H x 9.6" Diam (10.2 cm H x 24.4 cm Diam).
Tripod rattle vessels were a distinctive West and Central Mexican innovation: the hollow feet were formed as chambers and loaded with fired clay pellets before the leg was sealed, so that lifting, tilting, or setting the vessel down produced a rhythmic sound. Such wares served in both domestic contexts and funerary offerings across the Postclassic period. The zoomorphic supports of the Mixtec example, modeled as avian heads, follow a wider Mesoamerican convention of animating vessel legs with animal forms, lending the object both symbolic resonance and a tactile, sonic dimension.
Provenance: private Los Angeles, California, USA collection of E. Wolf, acquired before 2000.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
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 #203772
Condition
Larger has had one leg reattached with minor chipping along visible break line and small area of restoration to rim. More petite has chipping to rim and two stable hairline fissures extending from rim. Both have have scattered nicks and abrasions to surfaces, commensurate with age. Otherwise, both are intact and very nice with liberal remaining detail. Both still produce a light rattle. Larger has heavy encrustations to feet.
