The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2025

Kneeling Figure

c. 1200–600 BCE
stone
Overall: 26.3 x 20 x 21.3 cm (10 3/8 x 7 7/8 x 8 3/8 in.)
The Norweb Collection 1951.179
Location: 233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region

Did You Know?

An observant traveler discovered the left knee and hand fragment, orginally missing and now reunited.

Description

Outside of the Maya, Olmec sculptures of humans have a naturalism unknown in other Mesoamerican artistic traditions. On this finely carved figure, the musculature of the arms, torso, and legs is carefully depicted, and even the fingernails and toenails and are shown.
  • ?-1951
    Emery May Holden Norweb [1895-1984] and Raymond Henry Norweb [1894-1983], Cleveland OH, 1951, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1951
    The Cleveland Museum of Art
  • Cleveland Museum of Art. Art of the Americas: Picture Book No. 2. 1946. p. 27
    "Art and Archeology at The Cleveland Museum of Art." Archeology (Winter 1953).
    Milliken, William M. "A Missing Fragment Recovered." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 44, no. 3 (1957) pp. 46-8 www.jstor.org
    "Archeological News" Archeology 10 no. 2, (Summer 1957). p. 144
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 357 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 290 archive.org
    Alsop, Joseph. "Les Chefs-d'Oeuvre de Premiere Importance du Second Musee des Etats-Unis."Connaissance no. 172 (Juin 1966). pp. 55-62
    Alsop, Joseph. "Treasures of the Cleveland Museum of Art,” Art In America (May - June 1966). p. 34
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 290 archive.org
    Spaeth, Eloise. American Art Museums: An Introduction to Looking. New York, Evanston: Harper et Row, 1976. pp. 19-21
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 392 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991. Reproduced: p. 4 archive.org
    Coe, Michael D. The Olmec World: Ritual and Rulership. Princeton, N.J.: Art Museum, Princeton University, 1996. Cat. No. 14, p. 144
    Taube, Karl Andreas. Olmec Art at Dumbarton Oaks. Estados Unidos: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, 2004. fig. 30, p. 61
  • The Olmec World: Ritual and Rulership. Princeton University Art Museum (organizer) (December 16, 1995-March 3, 1996); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (April 7-June 9, 1996).
    Princeton, NJ: The Art Museum of Princeton University; December 16, 1995-March 3, 1996. Houston, Texas: The Museum of Fine Arts Houston; April 7, 1996- June 9, 1996. "The Olmec World: Ritual and Rulership." cat. no. 14, pg 144, color repr. (fig.1 is view of the underside)
    Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art; November 9, 1945-January 6, 1946. "Art of the Americas." p.27, black and white repr.
  • {{cite web|title=Kneeling Figure|url=false|author=|year=c. 1200–600 BCE|access-date=22 March 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1951.179