Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. An impressive burnished redware depiction of a shaman with a thick body and short limbs seated in a striking pose. Turning to his left, the ancient figure sits with legs spread and bent at the knees as he holds up both arms. His right hand is in a fist, perhaps holding a petite object, as he pulls back his arm, as though about to throw something, while is left arm is held out before him with an open hand. A prominent shaman's horn rises from his forehead, just above a pair of ovoid eyes, a large nose, and a closed mouth, all flanked by a pair of pierced ears. The top of his head opens to the hollow interior. Incised lines that encompass his biceps and mid-section suggest that he may be dressed in a short tunic. Size: 9" W x 14.4" H (22.9 cm x 36.6 cm)

Colima, located on Mexico's southwestern coast, was part of the shaft tomb culture during this period, along with neighbors to the north in Jalisco and Nayarit. In this culture, the dead were buried down shafts - 3 to 20 meters deep - that were dug vertically or near vertically through the volcanic tuff that makes up the geology of the region. The base of the shaft would open into one or more horizontal chambers with a low ceiling. These shafts were almost always dug beneath a dwelling, probably a family home, and seem to have been used as family mausoleums, housing the remains of many related individuals. This is a figure made to be placed inside those mausoleums, perhaps to mediate between the worlds of the living and the dead.

Provenance: private Kansas, USA collection, acquired via descent from family in Jalisco, Mexico around the 1940s, and imported into the US in the 1970s and 1980s

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#171510

Repair to proper right leg with some minor losses along break line. Repaired with some restoration and repainting. Expected surface wear with minor nicks and abrasions, commensurate with age. Areas of fire-darkening. Otherwise, excellent with great remaining pigments and nice earthen deposits.