The central figure of this fantastic pendant is
supporting and is supported by an elaborate
frame with curved top and bottom typical of
Diquis style. The ornamentation is composed of
mythical heads of beasts, like sea monsters or
sytlized crocodiles, with exposed teeth and
wonderful scrolls and spirals representing
flowing hair or even alligator scutes. The figure
itself wears a beautiful jaguar mask, very fierce
in expression and clearly indicated as a mask by
a thick edge around the sides. A unique feature
is a second, larger mask on his chest which is
part of his costume, revealing a face quite human
in appearance. There seems to be visual puns
going on, with an interchange between man and
animal, one becoming the other instantaneously,
as shamans were reputed to be able to do. This
pendant may well represent an actual shaman
involved in a ritual ceremony, perhaps related to
fertility rites suggested by the fact his penis is
the shape of a snake head, a symbol of
sexuality. In this pendant there are many things
going on at once--spectacle, pageantry and
drama of an ancient character full of mystery
potent as the sun.
- (FJ.6273)
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