Emerald’s Blog

Coatlicue, c. 1500, Mexica (Aztec), found on the SE edge of the Plaza mayor/Zocalo in Mexico City, basalt, 257 cm high (National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City), photo:  Steven Zucker  (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) Here is another piece from a  culture that longer exists.   In Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology stands a 10 foot tall finely carved basalt sculpture of the Aztec goddess known as Coaticue. She was the mother of the patron god Huitizilopochtli, who was the Aztec god of war. She was one of many goddesses that were found in the Sacred Precinct which is located under what is now Mexico City. This massive piece has designs on the front, back and underneath. There are snakes throughout this sculpture, in fact, her name Coatlicue actually means Snakes-Her-Skirt. The skirt she is wearing is woven of venomous snakes, she is also wearing a belt with a skull for a buckle. The necklace that covers her breasts and fat rolls is made out of hearts and hands. These ...

  This Chancay clay sculpture was created around the 12th-14th centuries and is a perfect example of how art can give us an in-depth connection to a culture that longer exists.  The Chancay people lived on the central coast of Peru, and were a community of artists that  weaved , created sculptures out  of fine cloth, as well as ceramic sculptures that have a  distinctive kind of style. This particular sculpture of a female stands a little over 18 inches in height.  The surface of this sculpture was painted with a white slip then painted over again with brown-blackish slip designs. She has an abstracted body which is distinguished by her large head, wide torso, and long, sizable legs with huge feet that help to hold her upright. The small arms are relatively flat, with a bend at the elbow and spoon like hands. Her facial features are small in comparison to her head, she also has oval shaped eyes with a decorative pattern on either side and a sharp triangula...