Lot 83
  • 83

Colima Seated Figure Protoclassic, Circa 100 BC - 250 AD

Estimate
8,000 - 12,000 USD
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Description

  • terracotta
  • Height: 12 in (30.5 cm)

Provenance

Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles
Jacques Sarlie, New York
Alvin & Estelle Abrams, New York, acquired from the above in 1968
Sotheby's, New York, May 15, 2003, lot 237
American Private Collection, acquired at the above auction

Literature

Hasso von Winning, Pre-Columbian Art of Mexico and Central America, New York, 1968, p. 89, pl. 72

Condition

Overall very good condition. Has break and repair just below and just above proper right knee.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

The 'saber-shin' ceramic figures of ancient West Mexico were often also hunchbacks. Persons with physical abnormalities were given special recognition for their shamanistic abilities. This figure is clearly poised in a trance state and wears a cap with a long rectangular flap extending down the back. See Townsend, Ancient West Mexico, 1998, p. 241, fig. 18, for a saber-shinned figure in an hallucinogenic ritual. See also Sotheby's, New York, May 15, 2015, lot 52, for a figure formerly in the Nelson A. Rockefeller collection.