Nayarit Pottery Seated Male Figure Holding Rattle
**Originally Listed At $1200**
Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Nayarit, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A hand-built and highly burnished pottery figure seated with crossed legs. The nude figure presents with an upright posture and holds a piriform rattle instrument in his raised right hand while draping his left hand away from his chest. The enlarged head bears protruding circular eyes, a narrow nasal bridge with nostrils flared from a thick nose ring, bared teeth, and ears adorned with trios of lengthy ornaments, all beneath an incised, backswept coiffure. The beige ground of the figure is accentuated with cream-hued pigment along the rattle top, eyes, nose ring, and earrings. Size: 8.5" W x 11.125" H (21.6 cm x 28.3 cm)
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 would most likely have flanked the entrance to a tomb in a way that archaeologists have interpreted as guarding. Some scholars have connected 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.
Provenance: ex-Stein collection, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA, acquired February 1, 2007; ex-Artemis Gallery
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.
#164331
Condition Report: Both arms reattached to shoulders, with restoration to left leg from knee down, and resurfacing with overpainting along new material and break lines. Light abrasions, a few stable hairline fissures on base, and fading to original pigment. Light earthen deposits and nice overall form.
View it on
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
**Originally Listed At $1200**
Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Nayarit, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A hand-built and highly burnished pottery figure seated with crossed legs. The nude figure presents with an upright posture and holds a piriform rattle instrument in his raised right hand while draping his left hand away from his chest. The enlarged head bears protruding circular eyes, a narrow nasal bridge with nostrils flared from a thick nose ring, bared teeth, and ears adorned with trios of lengthy ornaments, all beneath an incised, backswept coiffure. The beige ground of the figure is accentuated with cream-hued pigment along the rattle top, eyes, nose ring, and earrings. Size: 8.5" W x 11.125" H (21.6 cm x 28.3 cm)
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 would most likely have flanked the entrance to a tomb in a way that archaeologists have interpreted as guarding. Some scholars have connected 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.
Provenance: ex-Stein collection, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA, acquired February 1, 2007; ex-Artemis Gallery
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.
#164331
Condition Report: Both arms reattached to shoulders, with restoration to left leg from knee down, and resurfacing with overpainting along new material and break lines. Light abrasions, a few stable hairline fissures on base, and fading to original pigment. Light earthen deposits and nice overall form.
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
