Aug 10, 2021
Aug 10, 2021

Plate with Supernatural Being

Plate with Supernatural Being

900–600 BC

Stone (probably steatite [soapstone])

Overall: 4 x 16.4 cm (1 9/16 x 6 7/16 in.)

Weight: 0.48 kg / 1.05 lb

J.H. Wade Trust Fund 2021.131

Location

Did you know?

The supernatural figure on this small plate may be an apotheosis of the life-death cycle.

Description

This plate is carved with a feline supernatural sacrificer who holds a severed human head in its clawed paws. The diagonal clusters of plant foliage at the figure’s shoulders and hips imply that death is tied to the earth’s fertility, one being a precondition for the other. The figure, therefore, may be an apotheosis of the life-death cycle.

See also
Collection: 
AA - Andes
Department: 
Art of the Americas
Type of artwork: 
Ceramic
Credit line: 
J.H. Wade Trust Fund

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