On view
Art of the Ancient Americas
Pectoral/costume ornament in the form of the glyph Ajaw (lord),
600–800
Maya
Late Classic Period
y1983-51
Secondary noblemen are regular subjects of Maya art, with costumes and proportions that signal their particular social roles. The man wearing a tight vest while wielding a shield is a warrior, while the diminutive proportions of the figure to the right suggest a dwarf, an important court official. While the elegantly proportioned heads carved from shells at lower left likely reference lords, the central figure, who sits on a throne, is a sahal, a type of secondary noble, as confirmed by hieroglyphic captions on other examples. The rightmost figure is a musician with swirling song emanating from his mouth.
Information
Title
Pectoral/costume ornament in the form of the glyph Ajaw (lord)
Dates
600–800
Medium
Queen conch (Lobatus gigas) with red pigment
Dimensions
7.7 × 7.1 × 0.6 cm (3 1/16 × 2 13/16 × 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Gillett G. Griffin
Object Number
y1983-51
Place Excavated
North America, Mexico, Campeche, Maya area, Reportedly from Uaymil Island
Reference Numbers
K2843
Culture
Period
Techniques
Subject
May 1, 1963, Aaron Furman Gallery, New York, sold to Gillett G. Griffin (1928-2016), Princeton, NJ [1]; 1983, gift to the Princeton University Art Museum.
Notes:
[1] According to an invoice in the curatorial file. This is also corroborated by Griffin’s index (M63).
- Michael D. Coe, The Maya Scribe and His World (New York: The Grolier Club, 1973)., cat. no. 57, 117 (illus.)
- Thomas Dickey, Vance Muse, and Henry Wiencek, The God-Kings of Mexico (Chicago: Stongehenge Press, 1982)., p. 40 (illus.)
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1983," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 43, no. 1 (1984): p. 18-42., p. 41
- Allen Rosenbaum and Francis F. Jones, Selections from The Art Museum, Princeton University, (Princeton, NJ: The Art Museum, Princeton University, 1986), p. 29 (illus.)
- Linda Schele and Mary E. Miller, The Blood of Kings: Dynasty and Ritual in Maya Art (New York and Fort Worth, George Braziller, Inc. and Kimbell Art Museum, 1986)., pl. 93, p. 228 (illus.)
- Michael D. Coe and Justin Kerr, The Art of the Maya Scribe (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1997)., fig. 68, p. 103 (illus. detail)
