\\\*Skull Pendant

\\\*Skull Pendant

The forehead is marked by an incision that escapes to the sides and runs towards the back of the skull. The round shape of the face is repeated in the outline of the eyes, the outline of the hemispherical nose and the corners of the mouth linked by a clear, thin, horizontal opening. On either side, the pendant is pierced at the temples, allowing it to be hung as a pectoral. The reverse is completely hollowed out over the entire surface, and the back of the mouth bears traces of tools having made circular fixions. Spotted green jadeite Mixtec - Aztec, Mexico, 1300 - 1521 A.D. 7.8 x 7.3 x 2.9 cm Provenance : - Former Yvon Collet collection since 1968 - Galerie Mermoz, 1985 The miniature "masks" were used as pendants. The pieces are spherical in shape, focusing attention on the gaze with its round, incised eyes, to evoke orbital cavities like those reproduced below. The irises are not always detailed, except on the pendant at Dumbarton Oaks. The nose is either hollowed out or incised, as on our piece and the one presented in the exhibition "Mexico, Land of the Gods, Treasures of Pre-Columbian Art". The cheek bones are marked by the relief of the zygomatic arches. The mouth is suggested by an incision or openwork, as seen on our pendant. The representation of skulls is known to us from Spanish chronicles recounting the existence of racks (called tzompantli 1in Nahuatl), composed of real skulls (human or animal) as a warning to Aztec enemies. Archaeological excavations at Mexico City's Templo Mayor have uncovered the largest display of stone skulls known to date.