Deer Pendant
- Culture
- Maya
- Period
- Late Classic period, 600–909
- Date
- c.700–800
- Material
- Shell
- possibly from
- Guatemala, North and Central America
- possibly from
- Mexico, North and Central America
- Classification
- Jewelry & personal accessories
- Collection
- Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 114
- Dimensions
- 2 15/16 x 4 7/8 x 1/4 in. (7.5 x 12.4 x 0.6 cm)
- Credit Line
- Bequest of Morton D. May
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 1317:1983
NOTES
This pendant shows a deer posed mid-stride, frozen at a specific moment in time. The animal’s head is curved back with its legs pulled close to the body, as though looking and leaping to evade a predator. Carved from an exotic marine shell, the pendant was perhaps a piece of personal jewelry for a Maya noble. Images of deer frequently occur in depictions of hunting as well as sacrifice. This pendant may have been bestowed to a young Maya hunter as a token of his achievements.
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