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HOME : Pre-Columbian Art : Chupicuaro Art : Chupicuaro Sculpture of a Standing Woman

Chupicuaro Sculpture of a Standing Woman - PF.0439
Origin: Chupicuaro, Mexico
Circa: 500 BC to 100 BC
Dimensions: 2.125" (5.4cm) high x 1" (2.5cm) wide
Collection: Pre-Columbian
Style: Chupicuaro
Medium: Terracotta

$480.00
Location: United States

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Description

The remains of a once vibrant culture are now submerged under a lake. Fortunately, excavations in the 1940's on the site were able to uncover sufficient artifacts to give us an intriguing picture of people who lived there centuries ago. Chupicuaro was the elaborate burial ground of a village above the Lerma River in the state of Guanajuato, eighty miles northwest of the Valley of Mexico. The abundant offerings of pottery, jade, and figurines discovered there attest to a flourishing artistic culture. One of the most endearing types of the clay objects is the small female figures, or 'pretty ladies'. They typically show a naked female with short arms, extended stomach and a fancy coiffure or headdress.

This very delightful figure has very wide eyes, her mouth is open, and she wears an attractive headband. What at first seems to be her tongue is probably something she is placing into her mouth. She may be a fertility figure interred with the deceased to ensure continuity of 'life' in the afterlife. What is most striking to the viewer is the feeling of happiness and joy she exudes; undiminished after being buried for so long. - (PF.0439)

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