A Study of Small Sculpture from the Mesoamerican

The Olmec, Maya, and Aztec were dominating societies of Mesoamerica, rich in culture, community, and art. While life may not be completely interpretable yet, much in known about how these societies were constructed, and how their religion dominated their lives. Much is generally made of their massive stonework, their ceremonial complexes, and ritual sacrifices, but their small jade, ceramic, and stone sculpture deserves as much attention as the works of much larger size have received.

The Olmec were thought to have set many of the patterns seen in later cultures throughout Mesoamerica.1 San Lorenzo, the oldest known Olmec building site, as of the time of the Brittanica article, is known for its Colossal Stone Heads, all of which have prominent facial features. Las Bocas was excavated and many small jade figurines of people in the community were found. Some of these appear to have ritualistic purposes, judging by the incising noted on the sculpture.

The Olmec culture spread northwest and southeast, and seemingly influenced later cultures in artistic endeavors.2

The concept of sacrifice in Olmec art had ties to the belief of renewal; a birth-death scenario, where one is returned to the source - the underworld.3 Similar to monumental figures of men presenting children, wearing jaguar-baby masks, for sacrifice, human figures were sculpted in a much smaller scale, many of which are ceramic or polished jade (fig. 1).

The Las Bocas site of the Olmec produced many small figurines that are thought to represent the people who lived there. These objects display Olmec symbols on their hairstyles or bodies, and because they were found at or near grave sites, these pieces are believed to have more purpose than simply the depiction of daily life.4 An example of this type of sculpture is of a man and woman embracing (fig. 2).

The "Wrestler" figure is an example of Olmec sculpture that should be viewed from all angles, not just frontal. "The long diagonal line of the figure's back and shoulders is as beautiful and commanding as the frontal view."5 The pensiveness of the expression on the man's face suggests individuality and portraiture (fig. 3).

Jade was a really popular sculptural medium for small scale forms, (fig. 4) but ceramic forms with expressive gestures on frontier areas had begun to take on new popularity at the site of Xochipala.6 One notable ceramic piece from that area is a female figure from the Early Formative period. She has remarkably realistic features and proportions, as well as a short, but feminine hairstyle, womanly hips, and an expression of empowerment. Maybe this was not what the artist was trying to express, but the meaning changes through history, and yet, this piece can still relate to issues in society today (fig. 5).

Ceremonial complexes were popular during the Middle Formative period for many Mesoamerican cultures. A wide array of Olmec style ritual sculptured objects, created from jade or other green stones, were found to be seated or standing figures, zoomorphic creatures, masks, and other small objects.7

Figure 6 is a small, carved figure depicting a supernatural being riding a jaguar, as it is so named for this. At only 8.9 cm tall, this piece is gray-green jadeite with a milky patina and a vain of softer mineral. Based on similar depictions of this being and the jaguar elsewhere in Olmec art, the creature could represent the ruler's animal spirit companion. It is "his means of locomotion in his trance journey into the other world."8 While F. Kent Reilly's opinion is of this object having ritualistic ties to Shamanism, this, in theory, is only speculation, as such an object could have been produced purely for the enjoyment of the Olmec leader, as it is a whimsical depiction of the human-like figure hanging on for life to the jaguar.

The Esperanza culture of Kaminaljuyu developed during the Early Classic Maya period. This culture was a conglomerate of native Mayans under Central Mexican rule. This made for a mixture of ideas and styles.9 Strong Teotihuacan influence can be seen in certain ceramic vessels found at Esperanza sites. Teotihuacan was the most important city of pre-Aztec Mexico, located not far northeast of what is now Mexico City. At one time, one of the largest cities in the world, it was originally settled around 400 b.c. Because of trade, influence on and from the cities by and to other cultures can be noted.10

At Teotihuacan, ceramic sculpture was important, as well as working with obsidian. It wasn't until 1884 that the city was excavated, and a hundred years later, the excavations continue to produce new information about the culture of this city and its surrounding communities.11

Figure 7 is a tripod vessel with a cover and a stucco exterior that had been painted in buff, red, and light green.12 According to Michael C. Coe, some vessels contain symbols from both Mayan and Teotihuacan cultures, such as the Butterfly Goddess, a symbol of the Warrior Cult, Teotihuacan lords, and other Mayan and Teotihuacan deities.13 Other items found from this conglomerate culture include blackened vessels found in the mud of the lake bottom, tossed in the water as tribute.

The Maya, inhabiting southern Mexico, Guatemala, and northern Belize, began to settle in communities around 1500 b.c. By A.D. 200, these communities had grown into large cities with expansive areas of temples, pyramids, ball courts, and plazas.14

Pre classic Maya sculpture developed under the geographic expansion of the inhabitants into a variety of ecosystems, inspiring technical and artistic change. The highland inhabitants may have been earlier in initiating stone sculpture.15 Figure 8, an anthropomorphic mushroom figure found in Guatemala may have been a symbol of fertility, judging by its shape's connotation. Other regional sculpture includes figurines with swollen bellies, accentuated sexual regions, and even pregnant animal depictions. This could be because of the association of maternity and fertility with nature and Mother Earth.

The Classic Period of the Maya began to develop around A.D. 250 and flourished through A.D. 900. Around that time was the start of the Post Classic Period, which was conquered by the Spanish in the early 16th century.16 The information about the classification of these cultures is not strong in that it may be considered inappropriate to call certain periods Classic, Pre Classic, Post Classic, etc. because the rise and fall of Mayan cities was an overlapping sensation, and the establishment of a certain style would appear at many different times throughout the domination of the culture. For classification of the purposes of this paper, however, the division of the culture is used.

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