On view
Art of the Ancient Americas
Floral ear ornaments,
600–800
Maya
Late Classic Period
2003-25 a-d
The ancient Maya would have considered the young woman represented here to be a great beauty. Her fashionable hairstyle includes a high-set bun, stepped bangs, and a narrow strip at the center of her forehead. Red paint on her brow and neck highlight her white-painted face. The painted designs on her cheeks may have once framed a jade bead that would have been suspended from the hole in her nasal septum. Elaborate earrings may have originally hung from her ears. The floral forms of the nose embellishments suggest pleasantly fragrant breath, while the white flowers made of shell, displayed next to the woman, were likely ear ornaments and conveyed similar ideas about pleasing sound.
Information
Title
Floral ear ornaments
Dates
600–800
Medium
Shell
Dimensions
petals: l. 3.4 cm., diam. 4.6 cm. (1 5/16 in. x 1 13/16 in.)
pistils: l. 5.8 cm. (2 5/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Gillett G. Griffin
Object Number
2003-25 a-d
Place Excavated
North America, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, or Mexico, Maya area
Culture
Period
Subject
By 1987, Gillett G. Griffin (1928-2016), Princeton, NJ [1]; 2003, gift of Gillett G. Griffin to the Princeton University Art Museum.
Notes:
[1] Griffin lent to the Museum in 1987 (L.1987.57 a-d).
- "Acquisitions of the Princeton University Art Museum 2003," Record of the Princeton University Art Museum 63 (2004): p. 101-141., illustrated p. 128, p. 138
- Mary E. Miller and Simon Martin, Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya (San Francisco: Fine Arts Museum of San Fransisco, 2004)., pl. 13, p. 42 (illus., image reversed)
