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Based on archaeological and linguistic evidence,
the ancient civilization of the Olmecs appears to
have taken root and blossomed in the low-lying
Gulf Coast area of modern Mexico around 1200
B.C. Considered to be the first civilization of the
Americas, many aspects of Olmec culture would
be absorbed by the civilizations that came after
them. The Maya, for instance, were directly
influenced by their city centers based around
large platform mounds and their hieroglyphic
language. However today, the Olmecs are known
primarily for the distinctive works of art they left
behind. Olmec art was primarily a reflection and
result of their religion. The Olmecs believed that
a union of jaguar and woman produced an earlier
race of were-jaguars. Depictions of human
infants with the snarling mouths of jaguars are a
reoccurring motif of Olmect art. These were-
jaguar babies are thought to function both as
symbols of fertility and of the shape-shifting
powers of the shaman. The Colossal Heads, a
series of massive stone portraits of their rulers,
are perhaps the most celebrated works of Olmec
art. Olmec artists also commonly worked with
jade and greenstone, which they believed had
beneficial properties linked to fertility and
procreation.
The facial features of this greenstone mask are
characteristic of Olmec art. The down turned
mouth of the were-jaguar is thought by scholars
to depict a shaman in the midst of
transmogrification. Its harmonious proportions
are indicative of the sophistication attained by
Olmec sculptors. The smooth, highly polished
surface of the stone has been engraved with
abstract linear motifs along the forehead and
fleshy cheeks. The eyes and mouths are open,
the nose slightly upturned. Holes drilled in the
earlobes may have once been decorated with
inlays of shell. While it is possible this mask was
worn by a living individual during a ceremonial
celebration, it is far more likely that it served a
funerary function. The preservation of the
physical remains of the dead through
mummification was a central concern of Olmec
burial rites. Masks of jade and greenstone were
traditionally laid over the wrapped remain of
important individuals who had passed away. As
great civilizations rise and fall, they leave behind
traces of their existence. Ritualistic objects,
venerated in their own time, continue to exert an
eternal force long after they have left the hands
that once held them sacred. A mysterious energy
still radiates from this greenstone mask, a
testament to the artistry and culture of the
ancient Olmec civilization.
- (PF.4094)
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