**Originally Listed At $750**

Pre-Columbian, Guatemala, Maya Late Classic Period, ca. 550 to 900 CE. A plate with an undecorated exterior and a carinated lower body that stands on three rattling legs. The wide, shallow bowl has slightly flared sides that rise up from the point of carination and are demarcated by a different, denser iconography than the sparsely painted interior center. What pigment remains in tondo reveals a geometric design that may have been symmetrical and seem to suggest a feathered costume. Around the rim is a repeated stepped pyramid motif painted in a thick black line. The pyramid was not, as in Egypt, primarily a tomb, but instead was a temple, and invoking that motif was sign of status and prestige. Size: 13.5" W x 3.25" H (34.3 cm x 8.3 cm)

The Maya Classic phase is so named because it was the peak of their artistic and cultural achievements. Part of this, as in many societies, included highly specialized consumable goods. Elaborate plates like this one were designed to be instantly distinguishable from those used for everyday eating or drinking - not just in decoration, but also in quantity produced, making these a much rarer find than a piece of domestic pottery.

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

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#126507

Intact, with wear to pigment as shown but nice remaining outer bands of glyphoids.