Pendant in the form of a hummingbird head,

1000–400 BCE

Jade was the most prestigious material used to express religious ideology by the Olmec during the Middle Formative period (1000–400 BCE), when maize agriculture became the core source of the incipient state’s stability and wealth. The Olmec preference for blue-green jade, as exemplified by many of the works on view here, likely related to fecundity, whether through its similarity to plant life or to water, an association heightened by its high polish and translucency. Some objects, such as celts, mimic the form of maize cobs, while others seem to represent sprouting kernels. As one of the hardest materials available, jade was exceptionally difficult to shape. Powdered jade was used as an abrasive to allow slow grinding, sawing, drilling, and polishing, processes that could take years to complete for a single object.