Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. An evocative pottery figure of a seated shaman posed dramatically with a pugnacious expression; his right hand upraised in a clenched fist perhaps to protect the tomb to which he was placed as a guardian. His beady, ovoid eyes gaze ahead as he sets his jaw, lower lip protruding outward in a fierce guise of determination and focus. Atop the enlarged head is a horn-brimmed helmet that denotes the figure as a shaman and opens to the hollow interior, suggesting he may have dually served as a vessel, while a robust necklace of 5 petaloid elements drapes his shoulders, perhaps intended either for decoration or protection. The stone-burnished red surfaces imbue the figure with a mystifying presentation, inviting us to imagine what treasures he so vigorously protects! Size: 9.3" W x 15" H (23.6 cm x 38.1 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.

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: ex-Arte Primitivo, New York, New York, USA; ex-Art for Eternity, New York, New York, USA; ex-Dr. Gregory Siskind and Dr. Saul Tuttman collection, New York City, New York, USA, acquired 1970s

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#175873

Professionally repaired with some minor chipping along visible break lines. Some light areas of restoration and expected surface wear, but otherwise excellent with nice manganese deposits to surface.