Miniature Maya El Quiche Pottery Urn w/ Jaguar
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Description
Pre-Columbian, southern Mexico to Guatemala, Maya, Late Classic Period, El Quiche type, ca. 600 to 900 CE. A pottery burial urn in a style known as the Quiche (K'iche') Type, from highland Guatemala, featuring a cylindrical body and matching feline lid! The mold-made cat is a representation of a fierce jaguar - with bared fangs and raised paw. Unlike many other ancient civilizations, the Maya did not have cemeteries or necropolises; instead, they buried both human remains and ritual urns and vessels such as this, often filled with offerings, jade, beads, and other precious items. The jaguar was revered by the Maya as the mightiest wild feline and thought to possess supernatural powers to cross to the underworld, acting as mediators between this world and the afterlife - a fitting symbol for this funerary vessel! Size: 4.125" Diameter x 6.5" H (10.5 cm x 16.5 cm)
Caches of such vessels have been found in floors, in the fill of buildings, or set into walls. Vessels with lids seem to have been symbolic of houses or structures to the Maya, meaning that these vessels served as symbolic offerings of the buildings they were buried inside, able to be filled with offerings of food or drink, sanctifying the construction.
Provenance: ex-Marc Amiguet Schmitt estate, Amiguet's Ancient Art, Evansville, Indiana, USA, acquired prior to January 1, 2010
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.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#175064
Caches of such vessels have been found in floors, in the fill of buildings, or set into walls. Vessels with lids seem to have been symbolic of houses or structures to the Maya, meaning that these vessels served as symbolic offerings of the buildings they were buried inside, able to be filled with offerings of food or drink, sanctifying the construction.
Provenance: ex-Marc Amiguet Schmitt estate, Amiguet's Ancient Art, Evansville, Indiana, USA, acquired prior to January 1, 2010
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.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#175064
Condition
Repaired with jaguar arm reattached. Loss to ear and chips to rim of lid and vessel. Light mineral and earthen deposits scattered on surface and dark firing clouds.
Buyer's Premium
- 26.5%
Miniature Maya El Quiche Pottery Urn w/ Jaguar
Estimate $1,000 - $1,500
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Item located in Louisville, CO, usOffers In-House Shipping
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