Pre-Columbian, Maya Territories, Late Classic, ca. 600 to 1000 CE. A large and well-preserved figural whistle in the form of a seated elite person wearing an incredible outfit - long robes and a huge zoomorphic headdress, possibly representing a jaguar. This high status outfit would have been immediately recognizable to the Maya people, who would then have known who this whistle is meant to represent. We know that Classic Maya rulers often took jaguar names, like Shield-Jaguar and Bird-Jaguar at Yaxchilan, that Maya gods and kings wore jaguar skin clothing, and that Spanish colonialists reported that there was a "Spokesman of the Jaguar" who wore a jaguar skin (a fun job if you can get it!). This figure, therefore, probably represents a king or a god. The figure is clearly made in two halves in a mold; the Late Classic period marked new developments in technology and more complex and lifelike human depictions for Mayan artwork. Figural whistles like these have been found archaeologically in household contexts, perhaps representing a souvenir from visiting a holy site. Size: 5.2" W x 8.85" H (13.2 cm x 22.5 cm)

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

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#125980

Loss to top of headdress. Stable crack - possibly a flaw from the mold - along one side. Still playable! Small areas of manganese deposits.