Nayarit Chinesca Type B Tattooed Seated Female

Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Nayarit, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A large and lovely hollow-cast female Chinesca figure with a characteristically-enlarged head, heart-shaped face, thick neck with a faint yellow-painted necklace, and hunched shoulders adorned with several circular discs. Seated upon seemingly-amputated, nubbin-shaped legs, this figure boasts a meditative pose with her voluptuous hips, arched back, and slight distended abdomen, with both arms held tightly against her sides below a pair of perky breasts. Noteworthy to this figure are the dense, dark-colored tattoos, with designs ranging from simple solid bands to intricate spotted and geometric motifs, all in a bichrome slip schema of burgundy and maroon. The tattooed designs envelop the majority of the figure's body and head, with the exception of her crosshatched coiffure. A truly remarkable example replete with earthtone imagery and classic Chinesca charm! Size: 6" W x 9" H (15.2 cm x 22.9 cm).

West Mexican shaft tomb figures like this one derive their names from the central architectural feature that we know of from this culture. These people would build generally rectangular vertical shafts down from the ground level down to narrow horizontal tunnels that led to one or more vaulted or rounded burial chambers. The geomorphology in the area means that these chambers are dug out of tepetate, a type of volcanic tuff material, which give the chambers a rough-edged look.

Although the dimensions of the chambers vary considerably - some only large enough to hold a single burial and its offerings, others seem designed to hold entire lineages - the placement of burial goods like this hollow figure was very similar. Grouped with other hollow figures, and alongside clay bowls, and boxes, they were positioned around the body (or bodies), near the skull. Unfortunately, we lack the information we would need to understand what these figures were made for - do they represent everyday people, even individuals? Are they religious? Were they created to mediate between the living and the dead? Whatever their purpose, today they are beautiful artwork and reminders of the mysterious past.

Provenance: private Pacific Palisades, California, USA collection; ex-Sidney Newman collection, Pre-1983, acquired in 1950's - 1970's

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#131036 Dimensions: Condition Report: Expected surface wear commensurate with age, small chips to base, shoulders, and one ear, light roughness to base, with fading and minor loss to pigmentation, otherwise intact and excellent. Great craquelure to surface pigmentation. Nice earthen deposits, mineral deposits, and root marks throughout.