Lot 89B
Pre-Columbian, Colombia, Cauca Valley, Caldas Complex, ca. 1200 to 1400 CE. A heavy, slab-like mask with thin eyes, a gently projecting nose, a narrow mouth full of teeth that appear to have been filed, and a large chin. The figure has two perforations drilled on either side of the top of the face - which has a projecting rim along its upper edge - that probably once had feathers or ornaments attached through them. Black lines are painted around the eyes and the mouth. The black lines around the eyes extend to the sides, resembling the projections that jut out from the sides of the head on slab figures from this culture. Comes with custom stand. Size: 6.55" W x 7.75" H (16.6 cm x 19.7 cm); height on stand: 9.5" (24.1 cm)
The teeth appear to be filed by comparison to the famous gold mask from Colombia in the British Museum (Am1910,1202.5), which, although it dates to an earlier time, is from a period that seems to have inspired the artists of the Caldas Complex. Filed teeth were a stylish body modification in ancient Colombia. The open nostrils on this mask suggest that it may also have had a large gold or tumbaga nose ring when first made. A mask like this may have commemorated the dead.
Provenance: private Vaught collection, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
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#123141
- Condition: Repaired from two or three large pieces, with restoration along the repair. Remaining white and black pigment on the front of the mask.
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