GARDE

GARDE

*Chaman musician seated in front of his tambourine. He carries a pouch designed to hold medicinal plants, and holds a mortar in one hand and a pestle in the other. His beautiful face, with its intense expression, is symbolically directed towards the sky, as a sign of appeal to divine forces. He wears a crown with two lateral wings and the horn evoking his status as a magician. This carefully and realistically modeled work personifies this shaman in action, preparing to make a prophylactic potion after ritual incantations designed to heal his patient. Beige and orange coffee-red terra cotta, marks of time. Good overall condition. Colima, Western Mexico, 100 B.C. to 250 A.D. 30.9 x 23.2 x 23 cm Provenance: former Yvon Collet collection since 1969 Bibliography: Sculpture of Ancient West Mexico, Conty Museum of Art 1989, p.129, f.106, for a nearby musical shaman, from the Proctor Stafford collection.