Pre-Columbian, southern Mexico to Guatemala, Maya, Late Classic Period, ca. 550 to 800 CE. A wonderful, hand-carved stone hacha depicting the head of a deer in profile. The ancient animal displays a squat neck, a round skull, and an extended snout with thick parted lips. A sunken annular eye sits at the top of the animal's delineated cheek on both sides, highlighted by an incised lower eyelid that sits just below. A circular drill hole pierces the back end of the head, allowing the hacha to be suspended. Size: 8.5" W x 10.4" H (21.6 cm x 26.4 cm); 11.9" H (30.2 cm) on included custom stand.

The Mesoamerican ballgame was a ritual event that featured elaborate attire and accessories. Stone hachas were not actually used to play the game, but instead were probably worn or carried, hafted onto wooden poles like standards, in ritual processions where the elite sponsors of the game displayed them to demonstrate their wealth.

The Maya hunted the white-tailed deer extensively, making hunting a popular theme of Mayan artwork. Deer are one of the most commonly depicted animals in Mayan art, rivaling jaguars, monkeys, and snakes in number. Their meat was a major source of protein, as the largest game animal in the region; their hunt also had sacred significance. From the few surviving codices of the Maya and ethnographic information from the Spanish and modern-day Maya people, we know that the act of hunting required the hunter to enter into a partially supernatural realm and interact with various Lords of the Animals, the most ancient characters among all the magical beings and deities in the Mayan pantheon. There were rules to hunting that involved honoring the prey, and not taking too much from the forest.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-Hindman Auctions, Chicago, Illinois, USA; ex-John A. Moir Jr. Trust of 2013

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.

Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#167949

Losses to end of snout and front periphery of brow. Expected nicks and abrasions commensurate with age and use. Otherwise, very nice with light earthen deposits throughout.