Description:

Pre-Columbian, Mayan territories, ca. 600 to 900 CE. A petite hand-built pottery vessel in the form of a snake head, called a plumbate due to the lead-glazed surface. This type has erroneously been called a "poison jar"; however, scholars actually believe that such jars probably functioned as snuff bottles. The snake or serpent presented layers of symbolic meaning to various Pre-Columbian cultures - a creature that was was perceived as fearsome and deadly given its fangs and poisonous venom, yet at the same time, given the annual shedding of its skin, also a symbol of renewal, health, and rejuvenation. A wonderful example, replete with impressive hand-building applique and modeling techniques and powerful iconography that possesses multi-dimensional symbolic values. Size: 2.125" L x 2.25" W x 1.5" H (5.4 cm x 5.7 cm x 3.8 cm)

Provenance: Ex-Peter Arnovick collection, San Francisco, CA

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#117621

  • Condition: Small nick to lower jaw. Expected surface wear as shown.

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October 27, 2016 7:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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