On view
Art of the Ancient Americas
Tenon (?) in the form of a supernatural,
ca. 1000–600 BCE
Olmec style
Middle Formative Period
y1993-139
More Context
Didactics
Broadly modeled from pitter laval stone, this compact head is a cluster of swelling forms that cohere into a fierce, demonic presence. The figure is bust in length; the small hands at the base grip the body, presupposing crossed arms and a resolute bearing consistent with the dour set of the face. The sculpture is broken at the back; when intacts is was probably a tenon. Tenons may have served as markers in ballcourts. (from The Olmec World, 1996)
Information
Title
Tenon (?) in the form of a supernatural
Dates
ca. 1000–600 BCE
Medium
Vesicular pyroxene basalt
Dimensions
28.8 × 19.5 × 19 cm (11 5/16 × 7 11/16 × 7 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Samuel Merrin
Object Number
y1993-139
Place Made
North America, Mexico, Veracruz, Tres Zapotes area
Description
Broadly modeled from pitter laval stone, this compact head is a cluster of swelling forms that cohere into a fierce, demonic presence. The figure is bust in length; the small hands at the base grip the body, presupposing crossed arms and a resolute bearing consistent with the dour set of the face. The sculpture is broken at the back; when intacts is was probably a tenon. Tenons may have served as markers in ballcourts. (from The Olmec World, 1996)
Culture
Period
Materials
Subject
Possibly Tres Zapotes, Mexico. Gift of Samuel Merrin [1], to the Princeton University Art Museum, 1993. [1] Samuel Merrin is the owner of the Merrin Gallery, succeeding his father, Edward Merrin.
