Nayarit Redware Seated Mourning Figure

**Originally Listed At $300**

Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Nayarit, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. An evocative pottery sculpture of a mourning figure - a type common in Nayarit iconography - shown in the traditional seated pose of mourning with a recognizably somber attitude. Legs propped up and hands on knees, he hunches forward, eyes squinting as though shedding tears and mouth agape as if letting out a great sigh. A crest of spikes crowns his head and elaborate decorations adorn the ears, both indicative of an elevated status. Clay figures like this one are the only remains that we have today of a sophisticated and unique culture in West Mexico. 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. Size: 2.9" W x 4.6" H (7.4 cm x 11.7 cm)

Provenance: ex-Barakat Gallery, Beverly Hills, California, USA, acquired prior to 2000

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#175225
Condition Report: Professionally repaired with restoration, as well as expected surface wear as shown. Otherwise, excellent with nice remaining pigments and great manganese blooms.