Cylinder Vase with Animal Spirit Motifs
Artist:
Unknown
Place made:Guatemala
General region:North and Central America
Culture: Maya
Period: Pre-Columbian
Date: ca. A.D. 400-900
Medium: Earthenware with paint
Dimensions:
h. 7 in. (17.8 cm); diam. 5 in. (12.7 cm)
Credit Line: Bequest of Elizabeth Huth Coates
Object number: 97.1.25
Provenance: with Elizabeth Huth Coates (nee Maddux) (1909-1996), San Antonio, TX, by 1997; by bequest of the Elizabeth Huth Coates estate to the San Antonio Museum of Art, 1997
Label Text
The anthropomorphized jaguar depicted on this vessel is referred to as an “enema jaguar.” It is a supernatural being known as a way, possessed of powerful forces related to the underworld, disease, and sorcery. Some ways were associated with specific rulers. Through their link with ways, rulers could exercise authority over the lives of others. (Bernadette Cap, 2021)
Not on view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
