A standing green stone figure with arms crossed and small, hollow facial features.

About the Object

The relatively small Chontal standing figure seen here was created from mottled dark green diorite stone. It has been worked with pecking to create the hollowed-out eyes, shaped nose, arms, and legs, and is likely fashioned from a celt, or stone hand axe.

 

Additional Information

There is evidence that the Mezcala-Chontal traded with the Olmec culture centered on the Bay of Campeche in the Gulf of Mexico. While this object has not been definitively dated, it was most likely created between 700 BCE and 400 BCE, and perhaps as late as 250 CE.

Spencer Throckmorton Collection, New York, NY;
Gift to The Jan T. and Marica Vilcek Collection, 1995;

Tags
Chontal figure mexico Mezcala-Chontal stone
Share this page
LinkedIn

Related Objects

Mezcala-Chontal Standing Figure

Unknown Unknown Artist
Standing stone figure with pecked round eyes, humanistic facial features, and arms folded across the abdomen.

Mezcala-Chontal Standing Figure

1800-1200 BCE Unknown Artist
Small abstract stone figure with indented facial features features, a large pointed nose, and arms resting on its mid-section.

Mezcala-Chontal Standing Figure

1000 BCE-1000 CE Unknown Artist
Stone sculpture of an abstracted standing figure with carved facial features and arms at the torso.

Mezcala Standing Figure

Unknown Unknown Artist
Small abstract stone carving of a standing human figure.

Mezcala Standing Figure

Unknown Unknown Artist
Small, abstract stone carving of a standing human figure with broad, pointed facial features and folded hands upon its round abdomen.

Mezcala-Chontal Standing Figure

1800-1200 BCE Unknown Artist
Brown stone figure with geometric cuts and hollows indicating physical and facial features.

Mezcala-Chontal Standing Figure

c. 1200 BCE (Alternative Date: 300-100 BCE, Late Preclassic) Unknown Artist
Small abstract stone scultpture with protruding facial features including eyes, mouth, and a flat geometric nose.

Mezcala Standing Figure

1800-1200 BCE Unknown Artist
Abstract dark-green standing stone figure with indented features, including eyes, ears, mouth, arms, and legs.

Mezcala Face Pendant

1800-1200 BCE Unknown Artist
Face pendant with large pointed nose and indented features representing eyes and mouth.

Mezcala Standing Pendant-Figure

900-100 BCE Unknown Artist
Standing abstract figure with large head, small drilled eyes, and barely carved out arms, and legs.

You may also be interested in

Juan Pablo Contreras

Juan Pablo Contreras receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Music for his work as a composer and conductor of orchestral music that draws on his Mexican heritage, and for his leadership in founding the Orquesta Latino Mexicana.
Portrait of Juan Pablo Contreras.
March 15, 2021

Rodrigo Prieto: “Being a foreigner gives you a certain perspective”

Rodrigo Prieto receives the Vilcek Prize in Filmmaking for his emotionally riveting and technically masterful cinematography.
Rodrigo Prieto in a white button-down framed by set lights.
March 1, 2021

Juan Pablo González: “You allow the place to tell you what it is.”

Juan Pablo González receives the 2021 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Filmmaking for his nuanced and resonant documentaries about rural Mexico.
Juan Pablo González standing in a cellar surrounded by barrels.