This imposing Colima figure is a reclinatorio –
referring to its laid-back position. It is remarkable for its geometric yet
zoomorphic representationalism. It resembles a
bird when viewed in profile, though it has a
relentless interplay of complex forms that
oscillate depending on the angle from which it is
viewed. It is essentially a T-shaped sculpture
that always rests on the central legs, and either
one of the other ends – one of which is a pouring
spout, the other a fan-shaped tail. As well as its
avian appearance, it also has aspects that make it
resemble a fish, and also a howling dog. The
vessel would seem to be somewhat impractical,
for although it was doubtless able to hold liquids
(probably maize beer) it is likely to have had
another function, probably votive, funerary or
ritual.
All of the cultures encompassed under this
nomenclature were in the habit of burying their
dead in socially-stratified burial chambers at the
base of deep shafts, which were in turn often
topped by buildings. Originally believed to be
influenced by the Tarascan people, who were
contemporaries of the Aztecs,
thermoluminescence has pushed back the dates
of these groups over 1000 years. Although the
apogee of this tradition was reached in the last
centuries of the 1st millennium BC, it has its
origins over 1000 years earlier at sites such as
Huitzilapa and Teuchitlan, in the Jalisco region.
Little is known of the cultures themselves,
although preliminary data seems to suggest that
they were sedentary agriculturists with social
systems not dissimilar to chiefdoms. These
cultures are especially interesting to students of
Mesoamerican history as they seem to have been
to a large extent outside the ebb and flow of
more aggressive cultures – such as the Toltecs,
Olmecs and Maya – in the same vicinity. Thus
insulated from the perils of urbanisation, it
behoves us to learn what we can from what they
have let behind.
The arts of this region are enormously variable
and hard to understand in chronological terms,
mainly due to the lack of context. The most
striking works are the ceramics, which were
usually placed in graves, and do not seem to
have performed any practical function, although
highly decorated utilitarian vessels are also
known. It is possible that they were designed to
depict the deceased – they are often very
naturalistic – although it is more probable that
they constituted, when in groups, a retinue of
companions, protectors and servants for the
hereafter. More abstract pieces, such as the
current example, probably had a more esoteric
meaning that is hard to recapture from the piece.
The current piece falls within the Colima style,
which is perhaps the most unusual stylistic
subgroup of this region. Characterised by a
warm, red glaze, the figures are very measured
and conservative, while at the same time
displaying an often exuberant use of line. They
are famous for their sculptures of dogs, which
are often depicted as obese: it is possible that
this is an expressionist tendency, but the fact
that dogs were a regular addition to the Colima
menu makes it likely that they were indeed this
fat. The reclinatorios, however, have no real
parallel. They are always curvilinear yet geometric
assemblages of intersecting planes and
enigmatic constructions, always with the
tripartite design seen here. As stated above, their
function is open to debate, although it is of
course possible that they never had a practical
use. They are however exceptionally mature and
intelligent pieces of the ceramicist’s art, and a
worthy addition to any serious collection of
Mesoamerican antiquities.
