Pre-Columbian, Southern Mexico to Guatemala, Maya, Late Classic Period, ca. 550 to 900 CE. A beautiful and perhaps wearable pair of apple-green jade earspools carved by hand in a characteristic openwork form. Each circular accessory features oblong peripheral edges, a rounded interior gap, and a protruding plug backing. Two petite attachment perforations are drilled through opposite sides of the backing along the rim so the wearer could secure it with a narrow pin. Jade was revered by the Maya not only for its beauty, but also because it had spiritual power - it was believed to be the embodiment of the wind and the "breath" that formed the Maya soul. Ear spools are often shown in profile in Mayan art, usually with a bead or serpent emerging from that central hollow plug; this is interpreted to be a symbolic supernatural passageway for the breath of the soul to travel through. Size of each (both are relatively similar): 1.6" L x 1.5" W (4.1 cm x 3.8 cm)
Provenance: ex-Dr. David Harner collection, Arkansas, USA, acquired between the 1950s and 1960s
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#161377
Condition
Wearable as shown. Repair to approximately 1 inch section of periphery of one ear spool, and repair to small sections of periphery and plug backing of second ear spool, both with small chips and very light adhesive residue along break lines. Both pieces have light nicks along peripheries and abrasions to peripheries and plug backings. Beautiful jade coloration throughout.