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"Flat" Modeled Figurine Large House Model Nayarit, West Coast Mexico 100 B.C. to 250 A.D. Tripod Bowl Chupicuaro, Guanajuato, Mexico 400 to 100 B.C. Large Painted Squash Effigy Olla Colima, West Coast Mexico 100 B.C. to 200 A.D.
Our Price: $200.00
Our Price: $800.00
Our Price: $1,000.00
Our Price: $1,200.00
“FLAT” MODELED FIGURINE. Colima, West Coast Mexico; Late Formative ca. 100
B.C. to 250 A.D.  Ceramic; 6”H x 2 1/4”W (elbows).  Youthful, asexual type figure, with
cosmetic shoulder “nodes.”  Wears a peaked, folded cloth headdress and a breechcloth  
decorated with a rolled fabric “apron” attached in front.  Multi-flanged earrings.  Posed
standing upright, arms bent and held to its chest, legs straight, arched feet.  Unbur-
nished, monochrome red-buff with traces of post-fired yellow pigment (ochre) adhering
to the surface on the back of the head and inside some crevices.
Excellent condition. 		LARGE HOUSE MODEL. Nayarit, West Coast Mexico; Late Formative ca. 100 B.C. to
250 A.D.  Ceramic; 6”H x 6 1/4”W.  Rare, large-sized single house model with round
walls and high, peaked roof.  Open doorway cut-out in front.  Exceptional, excellent
condition with no visible repairs, breaks or dings.  Monochrome tannish—brown slip
orange-ware, not burnished. 		TRIPOD BOWL  Chupicuaro, Guanajuato, Mexico; Late Middle Formative ca. 400 to
100 B.C.  Ceramic; 5 5/8”H x 7 5/8”D.  Hemispherical shape with wide mouth and short
out-flaring neck, no rim.  Flat bottom.  Legs are short, swelled penis-type, bulging outwardly
and tapering at the bottom to a tiny, flat end. Elegant vessel, carefully modeled
and potted, uniform wall thickness.  Monochrome red slip, highly burnished.  Excellent
condition but for a few very minor surface chips, some minor slip erosion and MgO deposits (black) overall. 		LARGE PAINTED SQUASH EFFIGY OLLA.  Colima, West Coast Mexico; Late Forma-
tive ca. 100 B.C. to 200 A.D.  Ceramic; 8 1/2”H x 9”D.  Hemispherical shape with a
shoulder break, a flaring neck and wide, flattened and inverted rim.  The lip is painted
with a design of evenly-spaced, repeat bars in fugitive black pigment.  The shoulder
break is decorated with a series of round nodes, made by pushing the clay outward
from the vessel’s interior wall.  These nodes mimic the “knobs” on squash.  The area
above the shoulder break is decorated with a repeat design painted in fugitive black,
consisting of a row of five sets of 4-inverted “V” shapes, arranged in large-to-small
sizes, nested vertically.  Below this design is a black painted band symbolizing the
ground.  The sets of inverted “Vs” are unequally spaced, seeming to represent a series
of stylized mountain peaks and valleys within a mountain range.  Pottery vessels of the
West Coast cultures are frequently made in imitation of fruits and vegetable but such
vessels are rarely decorated with a painted motif, which makes this vessel a rare exam-
ple.  Expertly potted, with uniform walls and carefully rounded shape difficult to fire.  Ex-
cellent condition but for minor gouge near base, fire clouding in two areas and some
very minor dings.  Red to orange—tan monochrome slip, highly burnished.  Interior in a
burnished tan slip.  Burnish stroke marks visible on surface.
"Flying Saucer" Olla. Chupicuaro, Guanajuato, Mexico 400 to 100 B.C. Large Painted Jar. Jalisco, Mexico 100 B.C. to 200 A.D. Prong-Ware Ritual Jar. Mexico 300-800 A.D. Seated Hunchback Shaman 100 B.C. to 250 A.D.
Our Price: $1,200.00
Our Price: $2,000.00
Our Price: $2,500.00
Our Price: $3,000.00
“FLYING SAUCER” OLLA.  Chupicuaro, Guanajuato, Mexico; Late Middle Formative ca.
400 to 100 B.C.  Ceramic; 6 1/2”H x 8 5/8”D.  Hemispherical with a midsection break
shaped like a squat, fat “flying saucer” with a slightly flattened bottom, and a constricted
neck with a wide, out-flaring rim.  Elegant shape, beautifully potted, uniform wall thick-
ness, difficult to fire.  Excellent condition but for expert repair of rim and some minor
dings on shoulder.  Monochrome red slip, highly burnished. 		LARGE PAINTED JAR. Autlán, Jalisco, West Coast Mexico; Late Formative ca. 100
B.C. to 200 A.D.  Ceramic; 8”H x 2 1/4”D.  Hemispherical jar with short constricted neck
and everted rim, and slightly flattened, dimpled bottom.  Beautifully painted designs on    
neck and around shoulder, in post-fired white pigment.  Motif around neck represents
the “Sky Serpent” Milky Way appearing as three narrow lines forming an undulating ser-
pent band, outlined with “star” dots.  The mouth of the jar marks the “center” of the Milky
Way—Sky Serpent.  The shoulder is decorated on the front and back with an excep-
tional maritime theme.  The viewer sees giant ocean waves rolling past the coastline
and a mountain range in the distance, depicted as large C-scrolls that hang from a nar-
row band symbolizing ocean waves and the shore.  Above this is an unequally-spaced,
undulating band that represents the mountains.   Separating the main composition are
two panels composed of sets of vertical and horizontal bands, representing a large raft
that is outlined on one side by a row of “star” dots.  This maritime theme is unique for
West Mexico ceramics, and is especially noteworthy because Autlán is located in cen-
tral Jalisco, far from the Pacific ocean.  Pre-Columbian Indians engaged in long dis-
tance trade using ocean-going rafts and the stars for navigation, referenced here by the
Milky Way painted at the top of the vessel.   They covered great distances but stayed
within sight of land.
Excellent condition but for minor rim chips, rootlet etching, some minor slip loss, and
some loss of the post-fired white pigment, which is fragile.  Elegant shape, difficult to
fire; finely potted and painted.  Red-orange monochrome slip, well burnished, with burnishing strokes visible on the surface. 		PRONG-WARE RITUAL JAR.  Maya, Mexico; Classic ca. 300—800 A.D.  Ceramic; 9 3/
8”H x 8”D (bottom).  Pyriform (tapered) shape jar with a sharp basal break, flattened
bottom and rimless mouth.  Studded overall with small, sharp appliquéd thorns, except
for a zone around the mouth that is well-burnished.  The thorns depict the bark of the
sacred Seabee tree.  Elegant shape, finely potted.  Expertly reassembled from seven
pieces, all original.  Some prongs reattached, missing a few, otherwise very good condi-
tion—looks nearly perfect.  Monochrome red-ware; studded area unburnished, once
ritually coated inside and out with calcium lime, mostly intact. 		SEATED HUNCHBACK SHAMAN. Colima, West Coast Mexico; Late Formative ca. 100
B.C. to 250 A.D.  Ceramic; 11”H x 6 1/4”W (bottom).   Youthful, nude shaman with coffee
bean eyes closed in meditative trance, tranquil facial expression.  Rare congenital body
deformity.  Large, bulbous bilateral hunch on lower half of back.  Thin body build; nar-
row, concave chest; and thickened neck in front indicating a goiter.  In a trancing pose
sitting with knees flexed upward, wide apart; feet flat on the ground; arms held out in
front, forearms resting knees; hands held out in front, palms forward, fingers splayed
apart.  Unusual cranial deformation; infant “cradle board” type, in which the back of the
head is flat; the forehead is straight and the head is narrow and elongated side-to-side.
Wears shaman’s insignia of a single horn on forehead and an additional flat; curved
flange; element on either side of head. Carefully modeled narrow face with slit-mouth
slightly open; a thin arched nose; and curving, raised eyebrow ridges. Ear lobes have a
hole for attaching earrings. Monochrome red to orange—tan slip, well burnished.  MgO
deposits (black) and gray splotches on surface overall. Excellent condition.
Seated Shaman 100 B.C. to 250 A.D.
Our Price: $3,500.00
SEATED SHAMAN. Colima, West Coast Mexico; Late Formative ca. 100 B.C. to 250
A.D.  Ceramic; 13 1/4”H x 9 1/4”W (elbows).   Youthful male with a smiling face, sitting
in a “yoga” pose; hands resting on flexed knees, one foot to calf and one to ankle.  So-
called “admiral” figure, adorned with 4-petal shapes on chest, back and shoulders.  Sin-
gle shaman’s horn on forehead, held in place by two interesting fabric straps (incised)
around the forehead and under the chin; decorated with 4-sun symbols (disc with rays)
designating 4-solar years and water symbols (sets of wavy lines).  Wearing short
britches (incised outline).  Carefully rendered head shape showing “infant cranial defor-
mation,” causing back of the head to be flat.  Powerful physique--broad, robust chest
and torso, wide shoulders, well-developed arms and legs.  Large oval-shaped head;
large arched nose; open, round pellet-eyes; flange ears decorated with incised circles
on each earlobe.  Beautifully modeled figure.  Monochrome red to red-orange to orang-
ish tan slip, well burnished.  Overall surface deposits of manganese oxide (black) and
some rootlet etching.  Excellent condition
   
 
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