Choice & Fine Nayarit Polychrome Seated Figure

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Ancient & Ethnographic Art Through The Ages

By Artemis Gallery

Sep 16, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-09-16 10:00:00 2021-09-16 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Ancient & Ethnographic Art Through The Ages https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/ancient-ethnographic-art-through-the-ages-7473
Ancient art from Egypt, Greece, Italy and the Near East, as well as Asian, Fossils, Pre-Columbian, Native American, African / Tribal / Oceanic, Fine art, and much more! All categories, all price ranges... all legally acquired and guaranteed to be as described or your money back. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

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• Lot Description
  Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Nayarit, Protoclassic period, ca. 100 BCE to 250 CE. A remarkable, hand-built pottery figure depicted seated upon a stool with both tapered legs stretched before him as 2 legs of his stool balance him at the back. The ancient figure presents a broad body with tubular arms that extend from his square shoulders to place his hands on his hips. His characteristically elongated head displays ovoid eyes, a huge, projecting nose, and a petite mouth held slightly open, all beneath a helmet-like coiffure. A petite pair of ears bearing large ornaments flank his stylized visage. Applied beige slip adds fine details to his tunic, arm bands, and eyes, nicely contrasting his red-colored body, while his hair is enveloped in black pigment. Size: 4.5" W x 7.75" H (11.4 cm x 19.7 cm)
  
  Clay figures like this one are the only remains that we have today of a sophisticated and unique culture in West Mexico. They made no above-ground monuments or sculptures, at least that we know of, which is in strong contrast to developments elsewhere in ancient Mesoamerica. Instead, their tombs were their lasting works of art: skeletons arrayed radially with their feet positioned inward, and clay offerings, like this one, placed alongside the walls facing inward, near the skulls. A large effigy like this one would most likely have flanked the entrance to a tomb in a way that archaeologists have interpreted as guarding. Some scholars have connected these dynamic sculptures of the living as a strong contrast to the skeletal remains whose space they shared, as if they mediated between the living and the dead.
  
  Provenance: ex-private Southern California, USA collection, started in 1969; ex-estate of a retired college history professor, acquired in the 1950s to 1960s
  
  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.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
  
  Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
  
  #167245

  Condition

  Collection label on vase. Repaired from several pieces with restoration and repainting over break lines. Otherwise, excellent with nice manganese deposits in areas.
• Shipping Info

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