On this graceful and fascinating bowl we see an
extraordinary creature (a zoomorph) running
along the inner panel. In Maya cosmology,
zoomorphs were regarded as 'actors' who were
able to affect the natural world, while existing in
a non-physical realm. What actor means is an
entity with an individual personality who has
enough power to influence material objects, for
good or evil, and must be treated with care and
caution; somewhat like Shakespeare’s Puck in "A
Midsummer's Night's Dream." The zoomorphs
are usually composites of different animals,
which move and behave like human beings. They
participate in human activities including acting as
scribes or playing musical instruments. This
charming fellow in dark reddish- brown is both
bird and alligator, combined in a way that is very
much like a dinosaur. It alternates, as if in a sort
of game, with large solid circles in deep red. We
may be seeing here an abstract depiction of the
real (middle) world represented by the sun, and
the participation of an unearthly creature who
can effect people's lives, but must do so
fleetingly, before returning to its own realm. In
this sense a simple bowl, (whether it was
intended for ritual or domestic use), takes on a
new dimension, seen at a glance, and instantly
understood by a people who believed the
physical and non-physical worlds existed close
together, separated by only a thin barrier.
- (PF.2522)
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