Lot 92
Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A hand-modeled, rare example of a ceramic procession model, made to be placed into a shaft tomb. An elite personage sits atop a large litter with a semicircle covering topped by a spray of feathers protecting his or her head. The figure wears armbands, earspools, a large nosering, as well as an incised turbante or headband and sits with legs crossed, one hand raised to the chin and the other resting on one thigh. Four attendants, nude aside from large earspools and a headband securing a lobed coiffure, each present with a large, erect phallus, and carry the important individual in the litter. Each attendant is depicted with an expressive grimace and arms bent over his back to support the litter. A very intriguing example from the ancient Colima peoples. Size: 5.375" W x 5.25" H (13.7 cm x 13.3 cm)
Colima, located on Mexico's southwestern coast, was during this time part of the shaft tomb culture, along with neighbors to the north in Jalisco and Nayarit. In this culture, the dead were buried down shafts - 3 to 20 meters deep - that were dug vertically or near vertically through the volcanic tuff that makes up the geology of the region. The base of the shaft would open into one or more horizontal chambers with a low ceiling. These shafts were almost always dug beneath a dwelling, probably a family home, and were likely used as family mausoleums, housing the remains of many related individuals. Pottery figures and models like this one adorned these tombs.
Provenance: private Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA collection; ex-Minerva Gallery; ex-Benjamin Vega, California, USA, acquired in 2006 to 2007; ex-Gene and Virginia George, brought to the USA from 1961 to 1966
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#154945
- Condition: Repaired from multiple pieces, with small chips and light adhesive residue along break lines. Nicks to litter body, all four attendants, and interior figure, with light encrustations, and one area of fire-darkening atop litter. Nice earthen deposits throughout.
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