Mayan Chamá Style Vessel, Circa 600-800 Common Era

Details

Description

Mayan Chamá Style Vessel, Late Classic, 600-800 C.E.

Offered is a colorful ancient Mayan drinking cup, Chamá style,* cylindrical form … Read more Mayan Chamá Style Vessel, Late Classic, 600-800 C.E.

Offered is a colorful ancient Mayan drinking cup, Chamá style,* cylindrical form painted on an orange background, banded in a black and white pattern, red borders encircle the rim and the base of the vessel. Marked "9920" on verso. A rare example of a localized pottery style thought to be limited to the craft of only one or two generations of artisans on the Maya periphery, in a seemingly restricted area around the drainage of the Rio Chixoy.

Features: The distinctive *black and white chevron bands are the key marker.

Interpretation: The present example is absent scenes, indicative that it was not crafted for the specific use of the royal court elites, perhaps instead commissioned for someone of non-elite status.

Origin: Guatemala, highlands of the department of Alta Verapaz, Chamá Valley.
Period: 600-800 C.E.
Material: Earthenware with pigment.

Measures: 6 D x 6 H in. (15.24 D x 15.24 H cm).
Weight: 1 pound, 7.5 ounces (666g).

Provenance: Ex-Northern California private collection, active as a collector from the 1960s - 1980s, acquired from Stendhal Galleries,* 7055-65 Hillside Ave, Hollywood, CA, circa 1970s. Private provenance available upon request.

Documentation: *Stendal Galleries receipt, hand written and signed by Ronald W. Dammann, N.D. (circa 1970s).

Notes: Only a few dozen Chamá style vessels survive, and they represent a short-lived burst of artistic creativity at a time when major cities were in political turmoil and on the brink of abandonment. See less