Colima Sculpture of a Standing Figure - PF.1437,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 9.25" (23.5cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Figure - PF.1437,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 9.25" (23.5cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. The Colima are part of a group of archaeological cultures – known almost purely from their artworks – referred to as the Western Mexico Shaft Tomb (WMST) tradition. There are many distinct groups within this agglomeration, and their relationships are almost totally obscure due to the lack of contextual information. All of the cultures encompassed under the WMST nomenclature were in the habit of burying their dead in socially-stratified burial chambers at the base of deep shafts, which were in turn often topped by buildings. Originally believed to be influenced by the Tarascan people, who were contemporaries of the Aztecs, thermoluminescence has pushed back the dates of these groups over 1000 years. Although the apogee of this tradition was reached in the last centuries of the 1st millennium BC, it has its origins over 1000 years earlier at sites such as Huitzilapa and Teuchitlan, in the Jalisco region. Little is known of the cultures themselves, although preliminary data seems to suggest that they were sedentary agriculturists with social systems not dissimilar to chiefdoms. These cultures are especially interesting to students of Mesoamerican history as they seem to have been to a large extent outside the ebb and flow of more aggressive cultures – such as the Toltecs, Olmecs and Maya – in the same vicinity. Thus insulated from the perils of urbanization, they developed very much in isolation, and it behooves us to learn what we can from what they have left behind.   « Less

Colima Terracotta Mask - PF.1438,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 8.375" (21.3cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta.  More »

Colima Terracotta Mask - PF.1438,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 8.375" (21.3cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. Throughout history, great civilizations have adorned their important dead with masks. The pharaohs of Egypt, the kings of Myecenae, and the chieftain of ancient America were all buried wearing masks. Sometimes these preserved the appearance of life while in other cases they captured the spiritual essence of the deceased. Though the facial details of this clay mask are minimal, we feel the string presence of an individual here. We have no doubt that this funerary mask was created for an aristocrat, a person of strong personality and worldly rank. In the presence of this powerful effigy, we feel we know him intimately.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Figure - PF.1445,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 9.125" (23.2cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Figure - PF.1445,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 9.125" (23.2cm) high,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. With graceful abstraction, the artist has captured the essence of the human figure. Save for the nose, not a single feature is articulated, yet we can sense the spiritual energy of a real person. It is as if the hands that held it long ago the hands of the potter and those of the mourner who offered it as a funerary gift—transferred their thoughts and emotions directly into the clay. Stripped of any unnecessary detail, it radiates a life force that can be understood universally in any time and by any culture.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Shaman Warrior - PF.1919,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 14.25" (36.2cm) high,Catalogue: V8,Collection:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Shaman Warrior - PF.1919,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 14.25" (36.2cm) high,Catalogue: V8,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. The horn of power that adorns this warrior's helmet identifies him as a shaman, a magic man. Armed with an axe, he stands vigil against the unknown demons of the underworld. The cup he raises to his lips may contain some mind- altering drug to aid the transition into the realm of the spirits, or perhaps the blood of vanquished enemies. Such powerful figures were buried in the tombs of ancient Mexico to protect the deceased through eternity. In his presence, we recognize that certain fundamental questions about life and death remain unanswered in spite of the progress of civilization.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Man Holding Rattles - PF.1922,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 13.75" (34.9cm) high,Catalogue: V12,Collection:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Man Holding Rattles - PF.1922,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 13.75" (34.9cm) high,Catalogue: V12,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. This striking figure holds two oddly-shaped objects in his hands. From the swinging motion of his arms, they would appear to be rattles, perhaps made from gourds or animal horn. Buried centuries ago in a west Mexican tomb, such a figure might well represent a mourner at a funeral. The rhythmic beat of his rattles was probably intended to frighten away evil spirits. Even in a world that dismisses such notations as superstition, there is something reassuring in the way this fellow takes his protective duties seriously.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Shaman Warrior - PF.1923,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 18.375" (46.7cm) high,Catalogue: V12,Collection:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Shaman Warrior - PF.1923,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 18.375" (46.7cm) high,Catalogue: V12,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Woman - PF.1974,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 5" (12.7cm) high x 1.5" (3.8cm) wide,Collection:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Woman - PF.1974,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 5" (12.7cm) high x 1.5" (3.8cm) wide,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. This little woman is rendered with lively energy and a genuinely human warmth. Though she is nude, her elaborate hairstyle suggests her aristocratic status. She also appears to be pregnant, and this probably gives a clue to her ancient function. Placed in a tomb, she would have offered the promise of rebirth, renewal, the continuity of life. Her message is eternal, fundamental, relevant no matter what other changes progress might bring.   « Less

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Man Holding Rattles - PF.1976,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 6.125" (15.6cm) high x 2.5" (6.4cm) wide,Collection:  More »

Colima Sculpture of a Standing Man Holding Rattles - PF.1976,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 6.125" (15.6cm) high x 2.5" (6.4cm) wide,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Terracotta. Nude, saved for a broad red sash, this little figure nonetheless radiates an aristocratic air. Something in his pose, his bearing, the shape of his nose suggests that he is used to power and privilege. Centuries ago, he was probably placed in a shaft tomb by someone quite like him in demeanor. His function was to accompany the deceased through eternity, a kind of substitute for the person who offered him. We know little else about those individuals, not their names or their status, yet in the presence of this figure we understand their essential humanity.   « Less

Colima Stone Double-Headed Mace - PF.2118,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 4.125" (10.5cm) wide,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium:  More »

Colima Stone Double-Headed Mace - PF.2118,Origin: Western Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 4.125" (10.5cm) wide,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Colima,Medium: Stone. In Ancient Mexico, a mace such as this might gave served bothas a weapon of war and as a badge of chiefly office. It is adorned with the stylized heads of two dogs. The dog was a symbol of the underworld, and this mace might have been used for dispatching prisoners of war in ritual sacrifice. In a ceremonial capacity, it would have identified a clan or tribe, acting like a sceptre of office. Though its exact past is unknown, it glows still with an aura of power and authority. Such a weapon stirs the soul with an energy that transcends time.   « Less

Pihuamo Style Colima Terracotta Sculpture of a Standing Man - PF.2186,Origin: Colima, Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 8.5" (21.6cm) high x 4.875" (12.4cm)  More »

Pihuamo Style Colima Terracotta Sculpture of a Standing Man - PF.2186,Origin: Colima, Mexico,Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD,Dimensions: 8.5" (21.6cm) high x 4.875" (12.4cm) wide,Collection: Pre-Columbian,Style: Pihuamo,Medium: Terracotta. Though this standing figure represents a human male with rudimentary abstraction, we nonetheless sense the presence of a living personality. The crested helmet and painted bands across the chest and back suggest that this figure may a shaman warrior guardian, meant to keep evil spirits away from the entrance to a tomb. The figure takes a defiant stance, and his prominent penis may be another apotropaic symbol for good luck and to frighten away unknown evil. Though he no longer stands guard in a tomb, he seems to take his benevolent duties very seriously. Such a brave guardian might be useful to keep around.   « Less