Jalisco Standing Female Figure, Pre-Columbian Mexico

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #719879

This is a nice little Ameca-Etzatlan style Jalisco figure of a woman. She has broad shoulders and high-seated breasts that are typical for this type of figure, with nice burnishing throughout. See Figure 11, page 96, of Townsend's "Ancient West Mexico" for a processional group of similar small figures of this type.

AGE: 350 BC - 200 AD

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Pre Columbian Jamacoaque Transformational Figure

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #686982
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A standing Jamacoaque (Ecuador) figure with a high head dress, ear dangles, multi layered necklace with a large medallion that has a face on it. Snarling teeth, representative of a feline. Great color remaining.

This piece is intact with no repairs.

Age: Ca. 200 - 600 A.D. ... Click for details

Pre Columbian Jamacoaque (Ecuador) Figure

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #686977
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A highly adorned Jamacoaque (Ecuador) transformational figure with feline representation. There are green and yellow colors that remain and the piece is intact except for some very minor old losses on the back.

This is a great display piece.

Age: Ca. 200-600 A.D. ... Click for details

Pre-Columbian Maya Eccentric of a Chieftan

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #677263
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Maya eccentrics are tiny, fascinating works of art whose purpose is still poorly understood. Eccentrics are thin, finely-knapped ceremonial objects made of obsidian, chalcedony, flint or chert. They are typically assumed to have served ritual functions and are generally found in caches in ceremonial contexts. Eccentrics take many shapes, including real or mythological creatures and important symbols from the Maya world. They were produced over a very wide time span with Classic period production... Click for details

Large Pre-Columbian Jalisco Figure

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #659212

Jalisco is one of the modern states in Mexico, located in the west-central region bordering the Pacific Ocean. Archaeologists refer to the culture that flourished there in ancient times by its modern name since very little information is known about the people themselves. In comparison with the high civilizations of the Olmecs, Maya, and Aztecs, the Jalisco culture - and other West Mexican sites such as Colima, Nayarit, and Mezcala - remains shadowed in relative obscurity. The geography of the a... Click for details

Choice Pre-Columbian Jalisco Birthing Figure

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #655549

This Jalisco figure from western Mexico belongs to an uncommon class of figures showing women in birthing positions. Based on the sculptural evidence, Jalisco women gave birth by either kneeling in a squatting position, or by reclining. This figure clearly shows the latter, characterized by widespread breasts and an arched back.

AGE: 100 B.C. to 250 A.D. ... Click for details

Maya Brownware Cylinder with Carved Glyphs

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #654986

This lovely Maya brownware cylinder, likely produced in lowland Guatemala, is a good example of a typical, non-elite ceramic jar from the late Classic Period. The carved upper glyph band is a highly stylized approximation of actual glyphs, meant to emulate the true writing seen on elite vessels from earlier periods. The carved registers on the side are representations of the petate, a twisted mat of palm fronds that served as the seat of rulers. The petate was a popular symbol on pottery vessels... Click for details

Pre-Columbian Nayarit Polychrome Vessel

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #642095

Nayarit is one of the modern states in Mexico, located in the west-central region bordering the Pacific Ocean. Archaeologists refer to the culture that flourished there in ancient times by its modern name since very little information is known about the people themselves. In comparison with the high civilizations of the Olmecs, Maya, and Aztecs, the Nayarit culture - and other West Mexican sites such as Colima, Jalisco, and Mezcala - remains shadowed in relative obscurity. The geography of the a... Click for details

Pre-Columbian Tarascan Miniature Tripod Bowl, Michoacan

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #642090

This interesting little tripod bowl comes from the poorly understood Tarascan (or Purepecha) Empire, located in modern day Michoacan in West Mexico. These miniature tripod bowls appear to have been limited to elite burials, and were somehow a part of rituals associated with the official state religion practiced in the capital of Tzintzuntzan. Burial strata positions seem to conclusively date them to the Protohistoric period in Western Mexico (1400-1500 A.D.). However, to my knowledge, the precis... Click for details

Pre-Columbian Burnished Red Vessel, Guatemala

Archives: Regional Art: Americas: Pre Columbian Pre AD 1000: item #641663

This simple redware pot comes from Maya Guatemala, allegedly from the Preclassic city of Ceibal according to the old collection tag on the base. (Ceibal, or Seibal in English, is best known for the many spectacular stelae recovered from area.) The bowl is nicely burnished and in good shape -- it's a nice example for the money.

AGE: 900 B.C. - 100 A.D. ... Click for details