Pre-Columbian, Caribbean/Florida, Arawak People, Taino, ca. 1000 to 1500 CE. A hand-carved stone pendant in the form of a zemi, an abstract human effigy of a religious or spiritual type. The ovoid pendant features a slender, rod-form body with a sharp back ridge, incised linear and circular motifs across the abdomen, and a protruding head with concentric circle eyes and puffy lips, all beneath a peaked brow line. An unusual biconically drilled suspension hole is situated along the verso which enabled this composition to be worn on a necklace strand as a pendant. Most zemi depictions are standalone stone sculptures meant to rest in place, so a wearable example is rather rare. Size: 3.75" L x 1.125" W (9.5 cm x 2.9 cm)

Provenance: private J. Hart collection, Houston, Texas, USA, acquired mid-1970s

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#167557

Minor abrasions to body, face, and verso, with light earthen deposits within some incised details, otherwise intact and very good. Nice surface smoothness throughout and good preservation to incised details.