Image Gallery

Context Lost

Ceremonial Scene Ceremonial scene
This scene shared a shelf with objects from other areas of Mesoamerica in William Palmer’s house.
Ceramic, puparia absent
Ameca-Etzatlán style, Jalisco
Height 13 in (33 cm)
HM3817

Original Context

Musician Group Standing musicians holding rattles and blowing pan-pipes
These six musicians came from the same tomb. Differences in technique indicate they were made by more than one craftsman. It is rarely possible to gather the contents of a tomb in one place again after the artifacts enter private collections.
Ceramic, puparia absent
Comala style, Colima
Height 10 3/4 in (27 cm) – 13 1/2 in (34 cm)
HM3669, HM3690, HM3713, HM3763, HM3777, HM3779

Social Context

Squatting Warrior Squatting armored warrior
The posture is unusual, as is the decorative treatment of the warrior´s buttocks.
Ameca-Etzatlán style, Jalisco
Ceramic, puparia absent
Height 14 in (36 cm)
HM3835

Wider Context

Marriage Pair Marriage pair of seated man holding ball and woman holding bowl
The ball ties these figures, found at Ixtlán del Río or Sierra Barrancas in 1964, to the rest of Mesoamerica but the clothing resembles that worn on the Pacific coast of South America.
Ceramic, puparia present on male, absent on female
Ixtlán del Río, Nayarit
Height 11 in (28 cm) – 11-3/4 in (30 cm)
HM4112, HM4113

Context Found

Looters' Pits Looters’ pits at El Arenal, Jalisco, showing the extreme site destruction caused by illicit searches for shaft tombs. Photograph courtesy of Robert Pickering.