Pre-Columbian, Gulf Coast Mexico, Veracruz (Vera Cruz), ca. 3rd to 7th century CE. A wonderful hollow-built pottery male figure seated with crossed legs and wearing a small loincloth, his rigid posture emphasized by broad shoulders and stocky arms, and his neck decorated with an applied necklace boasting a trio of impressed ornaments. Gently balanced atop the lap and held with enormous hands is the body of a deceased young boy, perhaps the son of the man, who is bedecked with a bell-shaped pendant and black chapapote pigment around the eyes. The father's head is slightly upturned as if looking to the gods for answers surrounding the death of his son, his heavy-lidded eyes illustrating the immeasurable pain in his heart, his open mouth perhaps uttering a final prayer for his boy. Large earspools adorn the tall tab-shaped ears, and additional chapapote pigment details the chin and nipples of the father. A poignant example of loss and anguish in ancient Mexico. Size: 8.875" L x 5.5" W x 11.5" H (22.5 cm x 14 cm x 29.2 cm)

Excavations near the modern Mexican town of Remojadas have revealed two types of impressive, detailed pottery figures from the Veracruz period: the Sonrientes, the joyous "smiling faces," and figures like this one, more serious, mostly adult figures, sometimes with elaborate costumes, themes, and props that all seem to point towards religious or political ceremonies. These figures are often found with the bodies broken into pieces though with the heads largely intact, as they were ritually destroyed as burial offerings. Their clothing suggests that they depict people of import in society, perhaps priests or nobility.

This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full printed and bound report is available to the buyer upon request.

Provenance: private Hidden Valley Lake, California, USA collection, purchased May 20, 2019; ex-Artemis Gallery; ex-West Palm Beach, Florida, USA collection

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#170716

Both figures repaired from multiple pieces with small chips, light resurfacing, and adhesive residue along break lines. Child is loose and not attached to main figure as intended. Areas of restoration to both arms of father. First TL hole on base and second TL hole on right arm pit of large figure. Chips and abrasions to base, child, body, arms, and head, with fading to areas of chapapote pigment, and light encrustations. Light earthen deposits throughout. Old inventory label beneath base.