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HOME :
Pre-Columbian Art :
Olmec Masks : Olmec Jadeite Mask
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Olmec Jadeite Mask - PF.3359
Origin: Mexico
Circa: 900
BC
to 500
BC
Dimensions:
2" (5.1cm) high
Collection: Pre-Columbian
Style: Olmec
Medium: Jadeite
$8,600.00
Location: United States
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| Description |
This mask touches and exhilarates centers of life
beyond our present reality. It serves as a means
of transforming the ordinary to the
extraordinary, the natural to the supernatural.
The mask has always been used as a ritual agent
of transformation in Meso-America. The ritual
wearer of this mask, the shaman, not only
represented the god; he was the god. He
manifested the life-force. Through that ritual
transformation joining the worlds of spirit and
nature, man and god fused in the zone of
mysterious transition marked by the mask itself
This mask is the seat of the soul, where the
outer and inner worlds meet. We are left to
ponder over the mysteries of the universe hidden
behind this mask, and the awakened insights it
has brought to our own inner spirits.
The ultimate sacred nature of the Ancient Olmec
is indicated by the slightly downturned mouth,
suggestive, of course, of the symbolic were-
jaguar. It is a symbol of divine beauty and
worldly power. The eyes are carved upward along
with the eyebrows. The expression is watchful,
yet calm and meditative. These are
characteristics of an ideal ruler who could be
authoritative and powerful, as well as being wise
and thoughtful. Perhaps this expression explains
to us why the Olmecs flourished. They may have
had ideal rulers who had the wisdom to
discriminate what was positive or negative for
the people as a whole. The artist's desire and
ability to idealize certain traits of an ideal and
deified ruler is marvelously displayed here. Rare
and majestic, this mask captivates our attention
and sparks our own inner wisdom to
discriminate what is positive or negative in our
own lives.
- (PF.3359)
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