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Pre-Columbian Fragment from a Burner, Teotihuacan

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Directory: Archives:Regional Art:Americas:Pre Columbian: Pre AD 1000: Item # 510975

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Pre-Columbian Fragment from a Burner, Teotihuacan
This interesting piece is a fragment from a burner, a common domestic object found in household debris from the sprawling residential area around ancient Teotihuacan. As you can discern from the slope of the attached remnant bowl, the prong with the adorno would have been mounted on the inside rim of the bowl with the face oriented outward. Three of these prongs would have been spaced at even intervals around the bowl, with a hole running down the length of each. In daily use, a stick would have been placed in each hole, forming a tripod. A small fire would then be set in the middle of the burner, and a plate with food would have been set on the tripod above the flame, thereby keeping the food warm. In other words, this is a piece of an ancient hot plate...sometimes it's hard to remember that many modern kitchen gadgets are just new takes on very old ideas! For an example of an intact burner, see Berrin & Pasztory's "Teotihuacan: Art from the City of the Gods," number 129. Although this is very much a utilitarian object, burners were decorated with molded deities, portrait heads, and animal imagery beginning in the Metepec period ca. 650-750 A.D.

AGE: 650-900 A.D.

CONDITION: Fragmentary as noted, but with a personable and very nicely molded adorno.

DIMENSIONS: About 4.5" tall and 5.5" wide, with the adorno itself measuring 2.25" tall (11.4cm, 14cm, and 5.7cm, respectively).


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