Pre-Columbian, Mexico City region, Aztec, ca 1300 to 1500 CE. This is an extremely rare and beautiful grouping of 5 decorated baked clay spindle whorls, or malacates as they are known in both Spanish and Nahuatl. They range from cream colored to tawny to dark red. Each has a unique design -- a bird, a labyrinth, what appears to be a collection of eyes, and two different serpents. Aztec spindle whorls are found decorated only about 20% of the time making these still rarer. Spindle whorls are perforated disks that were used in the production of spun fiber, and as a result are the most common evidence for the production of textiles in pre-Columbian Latin America. However, they also have meaning for our understanding of that world beyond just the utilitarian. Excavations in the early 2000s in Belize found almost 200 broken spindle whorls in what archaeologists interpreted as a ritual deposit. Other researchers have suggested that the intricate decorations on spindle whorls were part of the attachment that women felt to the objects they used to produce goods, meaning that they took great pride and probably a sense of identity in their work. For example, in Cholula, spindle whorls were often decorated with bitumen, which was connected to Tlazolteotl, an earth goddess associated with childbirth, sexuality, and menstruation. However, there is also a dark side to Aztec spindle whorls -- they are found more commonly during the Aztec period throughout Mexico than in any preceding periods, suggesting that the Aztec demand for tribute in the form of woven textiles was very high. Women probably worked much more at producing textiles than they had earlier in time. The stories behind the spindle whorls are an interesting compliment to their artistry! Size: they range in size from 2-1/4" to 1" (6 cm x 2-1/2 cm) diameter; they come with a custom stand that is 9" W x 5-1/4" H x 1-1/2" L (23 cm x 13 cm x 4 cm).

Provenance: Ex-private Olan collection Pacific Palasades, CA, through family descent, acquired before 1980.

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#110535

Minor chipping on reverse of one, else just about choice