Olmeca, México Blue Jade Anthropomorphic Figure. c. 1100 - 500 BC. 10.2 cm. Spanish Export License.

ANTHROPOMORPHIC FIGURE\r
\r
Olmeca, México · c. 1100 - 500 BC\r
\r
Material\r
Blue Jade\r
\r
Size\r
Height 10. 2 cm\r
\r
Provenance\r
- Private collection, H. T. , California (USA) . \r
Private collection, New York (USA) . Inventory number "77467". \r
\r
Condition\r
Intact. \r
\r
Anthropomorphic statuette carved in jade (jadeite) in a round shape, completely symmetrical laterally, representing a masculine character with a monumental appearance, despite its small format. The man, dressed in a loincloth, appears standing with his legs apart and his arms bent at the elbows, his hands joined on his belly with the backs turned towards the viewer, the fingers differentiated by incisions. His head is very large, disproportionate to the body, since it is the most important part of the representation at a symbolic level. \r
\r
His face is energetic and hieratic at the same time, something characteristic of small Olmec statuary (fig. 1) . His eyes are long, narrow and deep, drilled with a trephine, and are framed by short but distinctly furrowed eyebrows. Under his eyes, thick dark circles worked with a much softer relief. His nose is wide and long, triangular, with trepanned nostrils. Two deep diagonal lines define the sides of the nose reaching the corners of the mouth, highlighted by two trepanned holes. The mouth, pursed and curved downwards, has thick lips, especially the lower one. The ears appear stylized, just a few slight flat vertical ridges, with an intermediate cut that differentiates the ear from the very long lobe. Finally, the head has an asymmetrical oval shape, wider at the bottom, determined by a wide jaw, powerful although rounded. \r
\r
The drilled holes that mark the main points of the face appear again on the torso, marking the intersections, in the armpits and the union of the hands, above and below. It is possible that all these holes, including the eyes, were made to be filled with a different material, such as shell or obsidian, which would add color contrast and expressiveness to the figure. In fact, parallels can be found in some contemporary pieces (fig. 2) . \r
\r
The back of the statuette is, on the other hand, noticeably simpler, although perfectly finished. Straight lines and flat volumes dominate, with no more anatomical description than the folds at the waist, a detail that can be found in other Olmec figurines (fig. 3) . The profile of the head is also remarkable, since the crown appears prolonged, protruding from the flat nape, something also common in this type of Olmec shelf figures (fig. 4) . \r
\r
This piece is part of a group of statuettes known as elongated men, small figures of a maximum of 30 cm in height, generally carved in jade or other green stones (figs. 5 and 6) . These are representations of standing characters, in a rigid position, with thin limbs and elongated heads, hairless, with a long upper part, and faces with almond-shaped eyes and downturned mouths. The legs are normally separated and straight, and the fingers and toes, if depicted, are indicated simply by incisions. It is believed that the peculiar shape of the head alludes to the practice of artificial cranial deformation, traces of which have been found in human remains in the tombs of Tlatilco, from the same period, and among the Maya, later. These figures usually represent holes like those in the piece under study, in the ears or other areas, probably to accommodate additional ornaments or even clothing made of perishable materials. It has been proposed that these statuettes could have had multiple uses, although always rituals. In any case, it is a formally heterogeneous group, with very diverse specimens having been preserved (figs. 7 and 8) . \r
\r
From the middle of the 11th century B. C. Until the Spanish conquest in the 16th century, green and blue colored stones (widely called green stone or "chalchihuitl" in Nahuatl) were prized throughout Mesoamerica for their exceptional brilliance and translucency. In addition, it was thought that they had the quality of retaining water, being capable of emitting steam, which stimulated the growth and sustenance of the surrounding vegetation. Since the color of these stones was related to that of water, the green stone was closely linked to the notions of fertility, abundance and life-giving properties. \r
\r
The Olmecs especially valued the bluish color of jadeite for the manufacture of life-size masks as well as a multitude of jewelry beads. Jadeite, a rare variety of green stone, occurs naturally in very few places in the world. The material for this figurine likely originated in the Motagua River valley in present-day Guatemala, the only known source of jadeite in ancient Mesoamerica. Some of the earliest jadeites obtained from the region may have been boulders, rather than quarried stone. \r
\r
Jadeite is an extremely dense rock with a relative hardness value equal to or even greater than that of steel. Artists in Mesoamerica generally used a combination of percussion and cutting, using stone implements such as flint blades, to approximate the size of the jadeite, after which they ground the surface of the stone with other coarse rocks for many hours to achieve the shape. desired. \r
\r
Thriving between 1200 and 400 B. C. C. the Olmec culture developed in the Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco, a territory bounded by the Gulf of Mexico and the southern mountains of that country. This area is characterized by being very humid, with rivers, lagoons and large extensions of swamps. Over it reigns a lush tropical jungle, populated by animals such as jaguars, tapirs, wild boars and monkeys. In its heyday, the influence of this culture spread throughout Mesoamerica. \r
\r
The Olmec was a culture with many coastal ties. It is thought that their diet must have consisted of marine foods, such as turtles, fish, rays and shellfish. At the same time, the jungle provided various wild fruits that were possibly collected for consumption. However, agriculture was the basis of their diet, in which corn, beans and pumpkins were the most common products. To sow, they used the system of cutting and clearing, which allowed a use of the fertile soil of the jungle. \r
\r
One of the best-known Olmec artistic manifestations is stone statuary. Above all, the monumental stone heads and ceramic figures known as “baby faces” stand out. Both types of works demonstrate great mastery, in addition to establishing certain key points in the art style that characterizes this culture: a combination of sinuous and straight lines, faces with slanted and almond-shaped eyes with flat noses and open nostrils. In some cases, the mouths present deformations similar to cleft lip or acquire feline characteristics, such as that of a jaguar's snout. The most commonly used finishing techniques for ceramics were polishing, under-relief and incision, which was often highlighted with red or white pigments. They also achieved notable mastery in the mural painting that adorns the walls of some buildings, probably for ritual use. The figures, mainly human representations, were drawn with the face in profile and the body in front, often holding objects in their hands and surrounded by symbols of all kinds. \r
\r
The Olmec religion worshiped the ancestors, certain natural elements, such as the sun or the rain, and various animals. Among the latter, the snake and the jaguar stand out especially. The cult of the jaguar is strongly appreciated in the representations of human figures with feline features. Human sacrifice was a common practice in rituals. They were apparently based on a cyclical vision of life processes in which it was necessary to destroy something in order to create something new. Few Olmec tombs have been found that are essentially those of very important people. They are characterized by having lavish offerings of finely carved jade and serpentine masks. \r
\r
The characteristics of the facial features of the stone figures, certain decorative styles and even some symbols and ideograms have led us to think of a possible Asian origin of the Olmecs. However, most researchers think of origins from nearby populations in the highlands of Oaxaca, the state of Morelos, southern Veracruz or northern Tabasco. The Olmec influence can be observed in almost all of Mesoamerica, especially in societies that inhabited the same period, which implies a fluid exchange of both resources and aesthetic concepts. The Olmec was, without a doubt, the most influential culture in the entire cultural development of Mesoamerica, since it laid both aesthetic and ideological bases that were used and reused by different subsequent societies, even up to Hispanic times. \r
\r
BIBLIOGRAPHY\r
\r
- DIEHL, R. A. The Olmecs: America’s First Civilization. Thames & Hudson. 2004. \r
- EVANS, S. T. ; WEBSTER, D. L. Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. 2000. \r
- MAGNI, C. Les Olmèques. Des origines au mythe. Seuil. 2003. \r
- POOL, C. A. Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica. Cambridge World Archaeology. 2007. \r
\r
PARALLELS: \r
\r
Fig. 1 Man holding a supernatural baby. Olmec, 1200-300 B. C. , jade. The Cleveland Museum of Art (USA) , inv. 10. 2015. \r
\r
Fig. 2 Seated figure with a baby. Olmec, ss. X-IV BC, serpentine. Metropolitan Museum, New York, inv. 1979. 206. 940. \r
\r
Fig. 3 Seated man. Olmec, ca. 900-400 B. C. , jadeite. Museum of America, Madrid, inv. 03175. \r
\r
Fig. 4 Statuette of the elongated man type. Olmec, 1200-300 B. C. , serpentine. The Cleveland Museum of Art (USA) , inv. 1990. 219. \r
\r
Fig. 5 Offering 4 from La Venta, set including 16 statuettes of the elongated man type. Olmec, 800-600 B. C. , jade and serpentine. National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City. \r
\r
Fig. 6 Statuette of the elongated man type. Olmec, 1000-500 B. C. , jade. Fowler Museum, Los Angeles (USA) , inv. X85. 864. \r
\r
Fig. 7 Statuette of the elongated man type. Olmec, ca...