Pre-Columbian, central Mexico, northern Veracruz, Huastec culture, ca. 600 to 900 CE. A fascinating standing human figure, a young woman based on her narrow waist, small breasts, and emphasized thighs. She stands with her legs splayed out, her arms down at her sides, and her large, expressive, fierce face pointed straight towards the viewer. She has been sculpted to have round, impressed dots for eyes, a large nose, and a jutting mouth. She wears two round earrings on each ear and a coiled headwrap with a round projection rising from above her forehead. Two marks on each shoulder represent shoulder pads, while a black line painted around her waist represents a ballplayer's protective yoke. Size: 4.3" W x 10.35" H (10.9 cm x 26.3 cm); 10.7" H (27.2 cm) on included custom stand.

The figure looks strikingly similar to one at LACMA that they have identified as a ballplayer: https://collections.lacma.org/node/178252, and is also quite similar to one at the Walters that is also identified as a female ballplayer: http://art.thewalters.org/detail/80320/female-ballplayer-figurine-2/. Ballplayers and the ballgame were commonly portrayed in ancient Veracruz artwork. The Mesoamerican ballgame was a ritual event, not just for entertainment (although it would have been that too!), and Veracruz was where it seems to have been most popular. The region has the highest density of ballcourts in Mesoamerica, with even the smallest towns having a dedicated one, which we recognize today as a rectangular area lined with sloping stands. Although most of the artwork produced around the ballgame features men, female players like this one are known from Huastec art, and they were sculpted over a period of several centuries. The headwrap and shoulder marks on this figure mark her as a ballplayer.

Provenance: private Andrade collection New York, NY, USA acquired 1960's; ex-Knoedler & Company

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#131170

Intact, with light encrustation on surface. Nice preservation of pigment.