Jaguar throne, ca. 500 to 1500 AD
Stendahl Galleries, Hollywood / New York City, USA (1964)
Edith Hafter (1911-2001), Solothurn, Switzerland
Art Loss Register Certificate, ref. S00242361
Description
sandstone, engraved bird on the outer left, rest. (right side cheek)
These chairs are affiliated with the Manteño culture, which flourished from AD 500 to 1500. Several of these seats, stone sculptures, stelae and monoliths were excavated by Marshall H. Saville between 1906 and 1908, under the sponsorship of the Heye Foundation. There is a lack of archaelogical data, however, that would define their context and associations.
Scholars who study Manteño objects use ethnological analogy to hypothesize that stone chairs may have been used by spiritual leaders and were linked to astronomical observations, wheather predictions, and public ceremonies conducted at certain times during the agricultural year.
Spritual leaders may have worked in pairs and larger groups, arranging the chairs to face east and west or to form a circle founded on the four directions.
Comparing literature
Marshall H. Saville, The Antiques of Manabi, Ecuador. The George G. Heye Expedition, New York 1907Notices
This object is subject to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Protection Act. Export documents are required for export (subjected to a fee).