Artwork
Male Figure
Artist
Unknown
DepartmentLatin American Art
CultureNayarit
Dateca. 200 B.C.-A.D. 300
MediumEarthenware with paint
Dimensionsheight: 9 in. (22.9 cm)
Credit LineSan Antonio Museum of Art, gift of Mrs. J. P. de Werthern
Object number67.129.82
GeographyPlace madeMexico
General regionNorth and Central America
DescriptionMale figurine with two feet and a third "foot" to make a tripod arrangement so the figure can stand erect. The figure wears a hat with a short brim. The center of the hat is a hole likely for firing purposes. The hat is painted with red and orange vertical stripes.The face is also painted with stripes on the cheeks. The figure has a nose ring. The torso is regtangular in shape and lacks painted or scultpted definition to the arms. The torso is painted to depict the clothing which consists of a shirt with jaguar spot motifs on the shoulders. The rest of the shirt is solid red. There is a hortizonal appliqued linear object protruding from the center of the torso which may symbolize a club. This portion of the torso and the club are painted in red and orange vertical lines. The legs have horizontal red stripes on a red background.Label TextIn West Mexican cultures, multiple statues such as this were placed in deep subterranean tombs. They often portray humans in all manner of dress and activity. This figure may represent a soldier holding a weapon, perhaps a club. The painted clothing on the shoulders has a pattern known to represent jaguar spots. Jaguars were symbols of authority and power throughout Mesoamerica, and the use of this pattern may symbolize these concepts here. (Bernadette Cap, 2022)
Provenancewith Mrs. Jeannette Petter de Werthern (1887-1991), Kettering, OH, by 1967; by donation to the Witte Museum, San Antonio, TX, 1967; by transfer to the San Antonio Museum of Art, 1994Published ReferencesKelker, Nancy L, and San Antonio Museum Association. America before Columbus: Pre-Columbian Art in the Collection of the San Antonio Museum Association (San Antonio: San Antonio Museum Association, 1985), 121.Not on view
Collections
Unknown
Culture: Lima-Nievería/Provincial Wari
ca. A.D. 600-1000
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.
