Aztec Carved Stone Relief Sacrifice Bloodletting

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Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic

By Artemis Gallery

Oct 8, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-10-08 10:00:00 2020-10-08 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-asian-ethnographic-5796
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• Lot Description
  Pre-Columbian, Valley of Mexico, Aztec, ca. 14th to 15th century CE. A cylindrical stone plinth covered with hand carved reliefs and painted with red cinnabar. A votive monument, altar, or podium for religious ceremony, perhaps bloodletting or astronomical observation. The color red represents blood, the sacred water, that would imbue a lifeforce into the stone. The intricate relief iconography encircling the exterior depicts three people dressed in ceremonial costume, indicating the god Quetzalcoatl, and his manifestation as the wind god Ehecatl. One stands on a toad creature, the earth god Tlaltecuhli, but they all hold a star wand, maguey cactus leaves, and perhaps a bag of incense. It is unclear whether these are priests enacting a divine scene, or the actual gods. A protruding star-like object is the center of their veneration; the wind jewel Ehecacozcatl. A stunning monument for ritual that has survived the Spaniards attempts to destroy Aztec religious practice. Size: 7.5" W x 8" H (19 cm x 20.3 cm); 10" H (25.4 cm) on included custom stand.
  
  A nine-page analysis by renowned Aztec expert Stuart Gentling was written for this piece that includes hand drawn sketches and notes. His interpretation of the iconography is very interesting despite this stone being only a portion of a larger structure, perhaps broken off when the Spaniard's attempted to subdue Aztec culture. The precise use of this stone is unknown, but the Ehecacozcatl wind jewel is representative of the planet Venus, a cosmological object of great veneration, its cycle around the sun being part of the Aztec calendar. The spiny maguey or agave cactus was used during bloodletting rituals to pierce the tongue or genitals which allowed an individual to experience a heightened state of consciousness and thus communicate with the gods. The blood also served as a sacrifice, a price the ruling class was willing to pay to maintain power. This stone relief may have served a combination of religious purposes; perhaps it collected the blood offering and simultaneously paid homage to the god Quetzalcoatl.
  
  Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-Stuart Gentling collection, Texas, USA formed between 1960 and 2000. Gentling was a portraitist and wildlife painter who painted a portrait of President George W. Bush when he was Governor of Texas.
  
  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.
  
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  #157078

  Condition

  Fragment of a larger piece. Losses and abrasions to relief peripheries. Fading of pigment and surface wear as expected with age and use. Amazing iconography interpretation!
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