Olmec Jade Duck Amulet

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Antiquities | Asian | Ethnographic Art

By Artemis Gallery

Sep 10, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-09-10 10:00:00 2020-09-10 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Antiquities | Asian | Ethnographic Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/antiquities-asian-ethnographic-art-5546
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• Lot Description
  Pre-Columbian, Southern Mexico to Guatemala, Olmec, ca. 1200 to 900 BCE. A finely carved greenstone duck amulet with an oversized head turned back 180 degrees, so that its long beak rests on its rump and tailfeathers. The duck is rendered in the round, so one can see the form from a number of angles and there is openwork in the center of the form, below the neck. The details are wonderful - large ovoid eyes with high arched brows that curl at the outer ends in an elegant spiral, a broad closed beak with the upper and lower sections delineated, and a curvaceous body. While this form may seem whimsical, Olmec statuettes representing figures donning duck masks suggest that Olmec shaman may have worn duck masks to assume an altar ego. Iconographically in the Pre-Columbian world, ducks were viewed as sacred animals of the watery realm and the sky world, as they could both dive deep under water and fly long distances through the air. Size: 3.45" W x 2.65" H (8.8 cm x 6.7 cm)
  
  We know that the Olmec settled in areas including San Lorenzo Tenochtitlan, La Venta, Tres Zapotes, Laguna de los Cerros, and La Mojarra; however, their influence impacted the entire Mesoamerican region. In 2005, Neutron Activation Analysis and petrography was used to demonstrate this impact via the widespread existence of Olmec ceramic vessels. Scholars suspect that other groups equated the Olmec style with elite status given the exchange and emulation of Olmec artifacts throughout Mesoamerica. It is also believed that the Olmec invented the famous Mesoamerican ballgame prevalent among the later Maya as well as other cultures in the region, and may have also invented religious entities such as the feathered serpent and the rain god, which would continue in subsequent cultures.
  
  While difficult to completely understand their belief system given that the Olmec were pre-literate, scholars theorize that their famous monumental stone heads, which can weigh up to forty tons, may have been erected to honor ancestors or rulers. The smaller jade and greenstone figures and amulets like this example are thought to represent totems or divinities. The artistry and technique of Olmec sculptural works is remarkable given what little technology that was available to them as well as the dearth of earlier works to reference for inspiration. The Olmec style oftentimes embraces a certain amount of naturalism as well as abstract interpretation of particular features as we see in this duck amulet.
  
  Provenance: ex-Barakat Gallery, Beverly Hills, California, USA, acquired prior to 2000
  
  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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  #155903

  Condition

  Intact, with a great weathered and deposited surface. The form and details are beautifully preserved.
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