Gift of Teochita, Inc.

Tetrapod bowl with lid, with residue of red and white pigments. On lid, modeled depictions include a water bird with a fish in its mouth, wings to the side, and at the back, a glyph meaning "anus." Four modeled legs represent peccaries with their snouts flat against the ground. Condition: The vessel is in stable condition. The lid has been broken and repaired (see updated conservation treatment report).

Purchased with funds given by an anonymous donor, Frank L. Babbott Fund, Carll H. de Silver Fund, Frederick Loeser Fund, Carl S. Smith Memorial Fund, Ella C. Woodward Memorial Fund and Alfred W. Jenkins Fund

Carved and incised shell (possibly a conch) plaque of a seated figure in silhouette, probably a Maya lord mounted on a Plexiglas base. A bar with seven glyphs rests on his right leg. It has been suggested that picture plaques such as these may have been presented to high-status visitors to Maya domains as prestige items that reinforced political alliances. Or they may have been burial items placed in the tomb of the depicted ruler. The first two glyphs read "His Pendant", and probably the ruler's name follows. Drilled depressions at the ear and chest held inlays and the figure also once wore a detachable headdress. Condition: There is a clean break on the torso, part of which is lost. Parts of the proper left leg and the head of headdress are lost. Areas at top and bottom of glyph column are darkened, as is the area on the bottom, proper right of the figure.

Gift of Dr. Milton and Madeline Gardner

Dark green jadeite plaque depicting a seated, crosslegged figure shown in profile and facing toward the right. He wears an elaborate headdress from which hang long feathers. His overall appearance is that of an important dignitary. The piece is pierced through the side indicating that it was worn as a pendant.

Painting, particularly on ceramic vessels, was the primary art form among the Maya. This plate is representative of the “turkey vulture” pottery tradition, a regional style that was created for a broad audience and used almost exclusively in burials. The vessel’s interior is decorated with the Muan bird, the messenger of the lords of the underworld. The “kimi” glyph, or death sign, emanates from the bird’s head just above the beak. On the interior rim, two centipedes swim in the underworld’s black waters.

A. Augustus Healy Fund

A. Augustus Healy Fund

Polychrome cylindrical vessel with processional scene of walking and kneeling figures/deities carrying items on their backs and in their hands. One of the figures is the Merchant God or God L. The rim is decorated with a painted basketry design in black outlined in orange.