Pre-Columbian, Honduras, Mayan Late Classic, ca. 550 to 850 CE. A tall, hourglass-shaped ceramic cylinder vessel. The body is painted with a glyphoid register seemingly showing human heads speaking around its exterior rim and a pair of identical motifs around the rest of the body that depict a long-beaked bird with magnificent plumage clutching a fish in its mouth. Each bird stands inside a curved border, against light background, with the rest of the vessel below the rim painted a dark brown, almost black color that creates a stark contrast. The birds are painted with thin, dark outlines and bright orange and red colors. Size: 5.05" W x 7.15" H (12.8 cm x 18.2 cm)

A long-beaked bird eating a fish is a common rendering of a mythological, possibly Underworld-connected figure in Mayan iconography. This may have been inspired by the sight of sea hawks and frigate birds fishing for stone bass at the mouth of the Rio Hondo, which flows into the Caribbean and along whose banks are many Mayan archaeological sites. Perhaps the most famous manifestation of this motif is carved into a temple platform at Palenque, where the ruler Akhal Mo' Nahb wears a headdress whose focal point is a water bird with a fish in its mouth.

Maya cylinder vessels seem to have been used as pots for drinking chocolate, a delicious and sometimes ritual drink enjoyed by people at all levels of society. What makes this example an interesting and valuable piece is the high quality of its design, indicating that it was probably commissioned by a high-ranking individual rather than mass produced.

Provenance: private D. C. collection, an Emmy Award winning Hollywood writer and Executive Producer, California, USA, collected before 2000

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#125979

Excellent remaining pigment, with very clear iconography. Beautiful manganese deposits on surface. Repaired on one side, from a large piece, with a stable crack running down a few inches from the site of the repair. Encrustations on the interior.