**Originally Listed At $650**

Pre-Columbian, Mexico, Guerrero, Mezcala culture, ca. 1000 to 400 BCE. An impressive pottery female figure of an unusual form - depicted post-birth after undergoing a cesarean section. Enveloped in grey slip, the heavy figure stands sturdily atop stocky legs, presenting a thick body with prominent knees, nubbin arms, delineated fingers, sloped shoulders, and pointed breasts that flank a lengthy gash - the incision from her procedure - stretching from her sternum to her sex. Applied decoration adorns the area just above her breasts, serving to bring the viewer's attention to her bosom thus directing the focus on her fertility. Her sizeable head displays a stylized visage with lengthy, striated eyes beneath thick, gently curved brows, a large, pointed nose, and a rectangular mouth held slightly open, all flanked by a pair of petite ears and crowned with a convex coiffure or headdress. This figure was likely intended to honor a woman who died during childbirth. Size: 6" W x 12.1" H (15.2 cm x 30.7 cm)

Provenance: private Charlotte, North Carolina, USA collection; ex-Bonhams, San Francisco, California, USA, acquired June 6th, 2005, lot 5455 (1 of 2); ex-Paul and Alice C. Baker collection, Tucson, Arizona, USA; ex-the Stanley Marcus Collection

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#181368

Professional repair to 1 toe on proper right foot with adhesive visible. Chips, nicks, and abrasions as shown. Otherwise, mostly intact with liberal remains of slip and earthen deposits in areas. Cannot stand independently.