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This striking piece of stone sculpture
is a palma,
a stone copy of a piece of apparel worn
by
athletes when playing the famous
Mesoamerican
ball game. The actual palmas would have
been
made from leather or similar; it is
likely that
pieces such as this were awarded to good
players. The palma has been carved to
resemble
a giant costume enveloping the stocky
body of
an aristocratic warrior. The top 1/3 of
the piece
is carved in the likeness of a fan,
bounded
horizontally by a hatched textile band.
The lower
2/3 of the piece comprise smooth
polished stone
decorated with curvilinear glyph-like
motifs. In
the centre of the piece is a complex
oval aperture
designed to resemble the mouth of a
feline, with
large, dagger-like teeth protruding down
over
the shoulders of the human figure. He is
standing on a “shelf” that projects
perpendicular
to the long axis of the piece. His
raiment seems
to suggest that he occupies a
prestigious social
position, with ornate clothing and
jewellery on
head, torso, wrists and ankles. The face
is calm
and impassive, with narrow eyes, an
inverted T-
bar nose and straight, parallel lips.
The piece dates from the latter end of
the first
millennium AD, to a dynamic time in
Eastern
Mexican political and social regimes.
The Classic
Veracruz cultures were small, tightly-
packed city
states, all governed by hereditary
rulers, who sat
at the top of highly stratified social
structures.
Economically, it was based upon slash
and burn
agricultural techniques, supplemented by
exploitation of marine resources, as
well as
hunting. The culture was fuelled by
long-
distance trade networks that ran
throughout
Mesoamerica, as evidenced by the spread
of
luxury items and exotic goods. In this
they
strongly resemble the Olmecs, who
preceded
them and to whom they owed a
considerable
cultural and artistic debt.
Religion was based upon the Olmec “earth
monster”, as well as a death god who has
been
likened to Mictlantecuhtli, a deity
worshipped by
their cultural neighbour, the Aztecs.
Like the
Aztecs, they were obsessed with death,
sacrifice
and the Mesoamerican ballgame, another
cultural
bequest from the Olmecs. There are
accounts
stating that the losing team was
sacrificed as an
offering to the gods; other chroniclers
suggest
that it might have been used as a
substitute for
warfare. As a result their iconography
is
somewhat sanguineous – with
decapitations,
blood-letting and bound prisoners common
themes – surrounded by extensive and
convoluted banded scrolls that can be
seen both
on monumental architecture and on
mobiliary
art. It is in this category that the
current piece
falls, as part of the extensive cultural
paraphernalia surrounding the ballgame.
A
defining characteristic of the Classic
Veracruz
culture is the presence of stone
ballgame gear:
yokes, hachas, and palmas. Yokes are U-
shaped
stones worn about the waist of a
ballplayer, while
the hachas and palmas sit upon the yoke.
These
were probably worn ceremonially by the
victors;
the actual pieces were probably made of
wood
and leather. Interestingly, while hachas
and
yokes are found throughout the range,
the
palmas seem peculiar to what is today
northern
Veracruz.
The symbolism of the current piece is
elusive,
although certain elements can be
isolated. The
form of the piece – as a feline’s mouth
–
suggests a therianthropic theme that
runs
through most Mesoamerican cultures, and
especially the Olmecs. The person
depicted was
probably a high-ranking chief, official
or perhaps
a victor at a high-stake ballgame. The
solemnity
of the figure, accentuated by the dark
colouring
of the stone, makes for a strong
sculptural
impact that is heightened by the Olmec-
inspired
carving methods (especially in the
rendering of
the figure). This is a beautifully
executed piece of
ancient Mesoamerican art.
- (AM.146 (LSO))
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