Vessel in the Form of a Seated Figure

Culture: Zapotec
Date: c.300–600 CE
Material: Ceramic with pigment
from: Oaxaca state, Mexico, North and Central America
Classification: Ceramics, containers
Collection: Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Current Location: On View, Gallery 237
Dimensions: 17 1/2 x 13 1/2 x 10 x 8 1/2 in. (44.5 x 34.3 x 25.4 x 21.6 cm)
Credit Line: Bequest of Morton D. May
Rights: Public Domain
Object Number: 1167:1983

NOTES

An elaborately dressed seated figure hides an undecorated cylindrical vessel. Made in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, the container likely once formed part of a larger grouping of similar works. He wears a cape and loincloth and is adorned with large earflares and a necklace mimicking jade beads. Topping the head of the figure is a feathered headdress decorated with glyphs. These symbols reference the 20-day calendar of the Zapotec people.

Provenance

by 1968 - 1983
Morton D. May (1914–1983), St. Louis, MO, USA [1]

1983 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, bequest of Morton D. May [2]

Notes:
[1] This object arrived to the Museum in 1968 on long-term loan from Morton D. May [SLAM document files].

[2] Last Will and Testament of M. D. May dated June 11, 1982 [copy, May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum]. Minutes of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 20, 1983.

We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.