Colima Seated Dog

Emile Deletaille, Brussels, acquired in the early 1960s

Andre Blieck, Brussels, acquired from the above in January 1968

Emile Deletaille, Brussels, acquired from the above in 2013

Thence by descent

The tall, grinning canine with his body, neck and head covered in a pattern of fine concentric wrinkles, with a distinctive treatment of the swept back, hollowed ears and highly burnished shoulder blades with a bicolor use of the slip in brown and red-brown.

Dogs held a powerful and pivotal place in ancient Mesoamerican cultures. In both the Maya and Aztec calendars, the favorable tenth day sign was ‘Dog’, Itzcuintli, in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec. Dogs were kept as pets, hunting companions and guardians of the home. The Maya portrayed a dog holding a torch in their codices, possibly referring to their belief that the dog brought fire to mankind.

Colima dog sculptures are unique in their realism, vivacity and lustrous modeling. As an important part of the burial furniture of their tombs, the dog, in life and in death, remained Pre-Columbian man’s most revered companion.