Galo Polychrome figures provide a wealth of
ethnographic detail because of their realistic
style. Coiffures, clothing, and careful body
painting or tattooing are all clearly shown.
Patterns acceptable for female body decoration
were probably different from those for males, for
whom mythological important animal traits
predominate. Galo effigies are almost always
female. The mirror-bright burnished surface is
technically unsurpassed by any Pre-Columbian
pottery, and the angular geometric patterns of
reddish-orange, black and cream are
impressively vivid. The guilloche ( an ornament
formed by two or more intertwining bands or
intersecting lines) and woven-mat patterns are
indicative of high rank. They represent the finest
ceramics of the great tradition of polychrome
pottery in Guanancaste- Nicoya.
Humans invented symbols, among the first of
which was woman. . . the promise of life;
fertility with a human face. This robust and full
Galo Polychrome female looks as though she has
just recaptured the philosophical message lying
behind the potter's creation of her. She
represents a vision that sought to find
expression of a symbol. The symbol is certainly
impregnated with the idea of fertility. It's difficult
to imagine what the elaborate ornaments on her
body precisely mean. We can only suggest that
they are complex cosmogonies and rituals that
will forever remain impenetrable. She stands
before us with her coiffure drawn back from her
forehead and tucked beneath her hat. She wears
a tanga (pubic cover) and holds a special bowl
underneath her left arm. She seems to be on her
way now that she has remembered her purpose.
We are left with admiration for the potter's
technical skills and our purely aesthetic emotions
felt for her. We behold her, our eyes listening to
the philosophical message that has been lost for
eternity.
- (PF.3205)
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