The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of August 8, 2022

Seated Lord with Removable Headdress: Figure

600-800

Part of a set. See all set records

Mesoamerica, Maya, probably Jaina Island, Late Classical period, 7th-9th century

Ceramic and slip

Overall: 21 cm (8 1/4 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 2012.33.a

Location

233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region

Fun Fact

It is estimated that some 20,000 people were buried on the tiny island of Jaina over a 500-year period.

Description

The major Maya grave offerings on Jaina Island were ceramic figurines that depict deities and humans in a variety of roles. The seated figure represents a male, perhaps another warrior, who wears a huge zoomorphic headdress. A skeletal face with articulated jaw descends from the headdress to fit as a mask over the figure’s face.

Provenance
The figurine was accessioned into the collection of the Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute (MWPI) in Utica, New York in 1968 (accession number 68.76). The MWPI deaccessioned the vessel in 2000, when it entered a private collection in the U.S. The results of the Art Loss Register search are pending.
Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2012.33.a