Standing male figure, c. 800 AD
Jaques Synave (1930-2013), Belgium
Description
terracotta, remains of painting, among others in the so-called “Maya Blue”, rest.
Jaina is a small island off the west coast of the Yucatán Peninsula that once served as an elite Maya burial site, and is now an important archaeological site for such exquisitely crafted figures.
Figures found here have become known as “Jaina-style figures”. Figurines of this style are also unearthed at inland Maya sites such as the Usumacinta River Delta.
Early Jaina-style figures are naturalistic, delicately detailed, and generally regarded as the finest figurine art produced throughout the ancient Americas. The figures can be solid or hollow. The latter predominate and are usually fitted with a whistle, or with clay pellets that produce a rattle-like sound.
All the figurines on Jaina Island seem to have been produced specifically as burial accompaniments.
Expertise
CIRAM, 0521-OA-310Z-2 (TL), Martillac, June 10, 2021Comparing literature
Leyenaar, Ted u.a., Von Küste zu Küste, o.O. 1992, p. 356 f.Notices
This object is subject to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Protection Act. Export documents are required for export (subjected to a fee).