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Artwork Page for "Horned" Male (Dwarf?)

Details / Information for "Horned" Male (Dwarf?)

"Horned" Male (Dwarf?)

100 BCE–300 CE
earthenware with colored slips, black burial deposits
Overall: 41.5 x 24.9 x 24.7 cm (16 5/16 x 9 13/16 x 9 3/4 in.)
Fiftieth anniversary gift of the Womens Council in honor of the Museum's Seventy-fifth anniversary 1991.20
Location: 233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region
Public Domain
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Did You Know?

This figure’s “horn” may be the spire of a conch shell, a reference to fertility.

Description

This figure’s concentrated, otherworldly expression is emphasized by the hornlike element strapped to its forehead. This "horn" may be the spire of a conch shell, which comes from water and, therefore, refers to fertility—likely an important ritual concern of West Mexican chiefs. The element also could represent the "horn of power" worn in some areas of the world by shamans, the spiritual leaders and healers of small, non-industrial societies.
An orange-colored earthenware figure in a seated position, their hands on their legs. A hornlike element is strapped to their forehead. There are pointed oval adornments across their chest.

"Horned" Male (Dwarf?)

100 BCE–300 CE

West Mexico, Colima, Comala style

See Also

Videos

Mortuary Art

Horn of Power

A Tomb Offering

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