Lot 102A
Pre-Columbian, Guatemala, Maya Late Classic Period, ca. 550 to 900 CE. A truly fabulous find - a carved pottery bottle, of elongated cuboid-shape, with a narrow round spout. The larger sides are decorated with a repeated image of a lord/god with a feathered/fiery headdress - possibly calling to mind an eagle, or Quetzalcoatl. Glyphs are down one side and halfway along the top. On the top of the vessel, the spout emerges from the center of the back of a howler monkey who lies on his stomach, his head and hands hanging off one side, his tail and feet hanging off the other. Size: 1.3" L x 3" W x 2.75" H (3.3 cm x 7.6 cm x 7 cm)
Elaborate vessels 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 your average piece of domestic pottery. They were also made to be for only a single, specific function - in this case, to hold something valuable. Traditionally, items like this one have been known as "poison" or "medicine" bottles, in part because of their comparison to bottles used by other native North American groups, but depictions of people using the flasks in artwork as well as residue analysis on archaeological examples suggest that they may have had other uses. They are often found in the context of burials, filled with red pigment like cinnabar or hematite, but with the remains of other things underneath the pigment (as if they were used in life and then filled with color in death). Because of their size, they must have been made to contain things not required in large quantities - indeed, poisons or medicines, but also perfume, tobacco, and ritual drugs like powdered mushrooms.
Provenance: private Lexington, Kentucky, USA; ex. Dr. Raymond Thomas collection
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#130117
- Condition: Intact, with root marks on the body and beautifully preserved features.
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