Head
Place of originChiapas or Yucatan, Mexico
Head
Dateca. 600-900 CE
Mediumlimestone, stucco and paint
Dimensionsobject: 10 x 8 1/2 x 6 1/2 in. (25.4 x 21.6 x 16.5 cm)
ClassificationSCULPTURE
Credit LineSBMA, Gift of Wright S. Ludington
Object number1984.34.5
Subject(s)
- heads and faces
Collection
- Ancient Americas
- Ancient Americas
On View
On viewLabel TextIn this sculpted head, the figure wears a headdress and the teeth are filed into the form of a “T,” a symbol associated with the sun and wind, emphasizing the life-sustaining role of the Maya ruling elite. Made of stucco modeled over a stone armature, this sculpture was originally painted deep red and black. Its purpose was most likely to serve as decoration on the outside of an architectural structure. Sponsoring art and architecture was one of the ways that Maya leaders documented their history and legacy.
In ancient times the Maya did not constitute a unified empire, but rather a vast number of independent and competing polities with a common cultural background. Drawing from inventions and ideas of previous cultures such as the Olmec, the Maya developed a writing system, calendar, and a society in which the arts and architecture flourished.
In ancient times the Maya did not constitute a unified empire, but rather a vast number of independent and competing polities with a common cultural background. Drawing from inventions and ideas of previous cultures such as the Olmec, the Maya developed a writing system, calendar, and a society in which the arts and architecture flourished.
1200-1521 CE
