Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity
Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2) - Art for Eternity

Nayarit Pottery Seated Male and Female Elder Couple (2)

10446

$3,750
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West Mexico, Nayarit — Ixtlán del Río Style, Circa 200 BC–300 AD

A charming pair of hollow ceramic effigy figures representing village elders or ancestors, modeled in red clay with extensive ochre, white, and black negative-resist painted slip decoration. Each figure is hollow, with an opening at the back — characteristic of the Ixtlán del Río hollow construction technique used throughout the West Mexican shaft-tomb tradition. The male sits with knees drawn up and one arm raised; the female is seated in a companion pose, both rendered with lively, characterful expressions. Both wear multiple ear clips/spools, nose ornaments, and headdresses, with banded body painting indicating tattooing, scarification, or textile patterning.

These hollow figures come from the shaft-tomb (tumbas de tiro) tradition of Nayarit, where male/female pairs were placed as funerary offerings, very likely commemorating the marriage or social standing of the deceased. The Met explicitly notes such figures are "typically… one half of a male/female pair," while the Art Institute observes they often commemorate marriage and life rites of passage. The hollow, open-backed construction is a defining feature of the Ixtlán del Río style and the broader West Mexican hollow-figure tradition.

The Ixtlán del Río style is distinguished by elaborate facial ornaments (multiple ear rings, nose rings), bold geometric body decoration in ochre/cream/black, and animated, individualized expressions. A true matched male/female pair, rather than a single figure, is notably more desirable on the market.

Sizes: 9-1/2 in. and 10-1/2 in. H (24.1 cm and 26.7 cm)

Comparison (cf.): Male/female Ixtlán del Río pairs in the Metropolitan Museum (200 BCE–200 CE), Art Institute of Chicago (100 BCE–250 CE), and Princeton University Art Museum

Provenance: Ex Ernst Haas Collection.




Every object is guaranteed authentic and as described, and has been legally acquired and imported in accordance with U.S. and applicable foreign regulations on the movement and sale of antiquities. A signed certificate of authenticity with a description and photograph accompanies this object. Any restoration is described on the invoice.

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