Creative Commons License
Jar with parrot-shaped supports
(Ancient Americas )
This jar, made of highly polished red earthenware, was likely a grave offering placed in a tomb in West Mexico. Many such vessels were made, with fluted sides possibly representing calabash fruits. More broadly, they represent the agricultural plenty which would have been needed for the underworld. The meaning of the parrot-shaped supports for the jar is unclear, but may refer to a myth from the region which has been lost over time, or simply to parrots’ enjoyment of juicy calabashes.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Stendahl Galleries, Los Angeles [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; John G. Bourne, August 18, 1944, by purchase.
Geographies
Mexico, Colima (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 9 15/16 x W: 14 1/8 x D: 13 15/16 in. (25.2 x 35.8 x 35.4 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of John G. Bourne, 2014
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
2009.20.213