- 117
Fine Costa Rican Jade Axe God, Guanacaste-Nicoya region, ca. A.D. 1-500
Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 USD
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Description
- jade
of celt form depicting the mythical part human- part avian figure, with circular eyes peering from the bird mask, the long beak with ridged caruncle resting on the chest, hands with incised fingers, and with a bird perched as headdress above; in brilliant blue-green translucent stone, pierced through the neck for suspension.
Provenance
Andre Emmerich Inc.
Private European Collector, acquired from the above
Christie's, New York, Important Pre-Columbian Art, A European Private Collection, November 12, 2004, lot 78
Literature
Elizabeth Kennedy Easby, Pre-Columbian Jade from Costa Rica, New York, 1968, frontispiece
Catalogue Note
Cf. Jones (1998: pls. 36 and 35). Jade axe-god pendants range from purely avian to composite figures of part- men, part bird. These celt-like pendant ornaments maybe depicting the avian alter ego of the shaman in a transformative ritual state.