Description:

Pre-Columbian, Gulf Coast Mexico, Veracruz, Remojadas style, ca. 550 to 950 CE. An outstanding example of a Sonriente (smiling face) terracotta figure, the most well-known of Remojadas figurines, featuring a traditional wide smile revealing filed teeth in a characteristically almost triangular shaped face, attached to a child-like body with outstretched arms and displayed palms. This is a male sonriente donning his loincloth as well as bands around his chest - further adorned with a fancy pectoral, ear ornaments, and grand headdress. Holes on the back allow this to be played as a musical instrument. Smiling figures are rare in Mesoamerican art and scholars suggest that they played a special role in Remojadas society due to their rarity. Why that smile? Well some scholars believe that it was hallucinogenically produced by ingesting alcoholic pulque while others such as Miller and Taube suggest that the smiling figures were actually performers. Size: 7.2" W x 11" H (18.3 cm x 27.9 cm); 11.45" H (29.1 cm) on included custom stand.

Provenance: private southern California, USA collection, acquired in the 1970s to mid-1980s

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#140917

  • Condition: Repaired and restored at neck and on one side. This is excellently done and almost impossible to see. Earrings may also be restored. Light deposits on surface.

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December 6, 2018 7:00 AM MST
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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