Indians of Central America -- Nicaragua -- Antiquities; Nicaragua -- Antiquities
Female, sitting figure, with a child in its lap. It has probably stood
insulated, as the back portions were pretty well elaborated, and,
besides, the pedestal was adorned with a free border, which was not
the case in any of the statues remaining in the circumference of the
mound 1. This statue was, more-over, remarkable by its large head, not
being turned straight forward, but somewhat upwards and side-ways. The
statue was rudely executed, far inferior in workmanship to most of
those mentioned before. There was no attempt at imitating the muscles
of the body; the arms and legs were thin and short, not detached from
the block. It was only in the molding of the face that some endeavours
to follow nature were to be detected; the eyes were formed by deep,
oval cavities; the nostrils and cheeks were indicated; the mouth was
closed, with thick lips; the ears were very large and projecting. The
short, vigorous neck was ornamented by a broad neck-lace, formed of
three round bands. The head was covered by a turban-shaped head-dress.
The right shoulder was somewhat higher than the left. On the front of
the body only the two semi-spherical breasts were elaborated; with
this exception, the chest and abdomen were on a line with the block
itself. The figure held before it a child or a smaller figure with
very large head, large, projecting ears, clumsy body, and short, thin
legs. In execution this statue strongly reminded of the figure η from
Punta de las Figuras, though it was superior with regard to the face.
It was found near the mound 3, but not in its periphery. The height
of the statue from the upper edge of the turban to the upper edge of
the pedestal was 170 cm. The length of the face from the lower edge of
the turban was 34 cm. The breadth across the shoulders was 60 cm. The
length of the smaller figure was 51 cm.
O
Pl. 17.
Female, standing figure. It reminded somewhat of the preceding one,
but was much better executed. It certainly had a free position, as the
back and shoulders were well sculptured. It carried on its head a very
large, round, thick slab of stone, between which and the head there
was a kind of turban, made of two round rolls. The face was unusually
broad, and particularly remarkable in that respect that the eyes were
placed obliquely. It was the only statue in which such was the case.
The nose was large, straight; the mouth broad, closed; the ears very
large, prominent, the left one longer than the right one. The shoulders
and breast were pretty well elaborated. The lower portions were broken
in many pieces. The diameter of the slab on the head was 72 cm.; its
thickness 45 cm. The length of the face from the lower edge of the
turban was 32 cm., its breadth 31 cm. The breadth across the shoulders
was 72 cm. The statue was found at the periphery of the mound 6.
P
Pl. 18.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account