Olmec figurine

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"The Wrestler", an Olmec era figurine, 1200 - 800 BCE.. Art historian George Kubler finds that "the spiraling motion of the body, the multiplicity of profile, the coherent muscles, and the expressive restraint of the work set it apart as among the great works of sculpture of all ages".^[1]
© George and Audrey DeLange.

An archetypical baby-face figurine from Las Bocas.
© Aimee W.

This article on the Olmec figurine describes a number of archetypical figurines produced by the Formative Period inhabitants of Mesoamerica.^[2] While many of these figurines may or may not have been produced directly by the Olmec people, they bear the hallmarks and motifs of Olmec culture.

These figurines are usually found in household refuse, in construction fill, and (outside the Olmec heartland) in graves,^[3] although many Olmec-style figurines, particularly those labelled as Las Bocas- or Xochipala-style, were recovered by looters and are without provenance, it is assumed that most were from burial offerings.^[4]

The vast majority of figurines are simple in design, often nude or with a minimum of clothing, and made of local terracotta. Most of these recoveries are mere fragments: a head, arm, torso, or a leg. More durable and better known by the general public are those figurines carved, usually with a degree of skill, from jade, serpentine, greenstone, basalt, and other minerals and stones. The figurines vary considerably, with individual and stylistic differences.

[edit] Baby-face figurines

The "baby-face" figurine is a unique marker of Olmec culture. These small hollow ceramic figurines are easily recognized by the chubby body, the baby-like face, downturned mouth, and the slit-like slanting eyes. They are hollow ceramics, usually white-slipped, and have been consistently found in all sites showing Olmec influence.^[5] Given the sheer numbers of baby-face figurines unearthed, they undoubtedly fulfilled some special role in the Olmec culture. What they represented, however, is not known.

Compare baby-face figurines here, here, and here, and here.

Some hollow-ware figurines combine the seated, pudgy "baby-face" body with an adult, deformed head. See photo in Gallery below, as well as here and here.

An "elongated man" figurine, dark green serpentine.

[edit] Elongated man

Another common figurine style is the "elongated man". These standing figurines, customarily well under 1 ft (30 cm) in height and carved from jade, and can be characterized by their thin limbs and their elongated, bald, flat-topped heads, almond-shaped eyes, and downturned mouths. Other examples can be seen here, here, and here.

The figurines' legs are usually separated, often straight, sometimes bent. Toes and fingers, if shown at all, are frequently represented by lines. It has been theorized that the elongated, flat-topped heads are reflective of the practice of artificial cranial deformation, as found in the Tlatilco burials of the same period or among the Maya of a later era.^[6] No direct evidence of this practice has been found in the Olmec heartland, however.

The ears often have small holes for ear flares or other ornaments. It has been suggested that these figurines once wore earrings and even clothes made of perishable materials. It has been proposed that these figurines had multiple outfits for different ritual occasions – as Diehl puts it, "a pre-Columbian version of Barbie's Ken".^[7]

[edit] Offering 4 at La Venta

At the La Venta archaeological site, archaeologists found what they subsequently named Offering 4. These figurines had been ritually buried in a deep, narrow hole, and covered over with three layers of colored clay. At some point after the original burial, someone durg a small hole down just to the level of their heads and then refilled it.^[8]

Offering 4 consists of sixteen male figurines positioned in a semi-circle in front of six jade celts, perhaps representing stelae or basalt columns. Two of the figurines were made from jade, thirteen from serpentine, and one of reddish granite. This granite figurine one was positioned with its back to the celts, facing the others. All of the figurines had similar classic Olmec features including bald elongated heads. They had small holes for earrings, their legs were slightly bent, and they were undecorated - unusual if the figurines were gods or deities – but instead covered with cinnabar.^[9]

Interpretations abound. Perhaps this particular formation represents a council of some sort -- the fifteen other figurines seem to be listening to the red granite one, with the celts forming a backdrop. To the red granite figurine's right, there seems be a line of three figurines filing past him. Another researcher has suggested that the granite figure is an initiate.

As the name implies, Offering 4 is one of many ritual offerings uncovered at La Venta, including the four Massive Offerings and four mosiacs. Why such works would be buried continues to generate much speculation.

A typical votive (ritual) axe with the were-jaguar motif. Note the downturned mouth and the almond-shaped eyes. This particular artifact is known as the Kunz Axe, first described by George Kunz in 1890.

[edit] Were-jaguars

The were-jaguar is a common subject of Olmec artifacts, and was carved into the surfaces of stelae and altars, on celts and votive axes, as well as being the subject of figurines. Characteristics of the were-jaguar include the downturned mouth and slit-like or almond eyes.

Figurines labelled as were-jaguar show a much wider variety of styles and subjects than the baby-face or standing man figurines. The subjects can range from human-like figurines to those that are almost completely jaguar. Likewise, there are several were-jaguar figurines where the subject appears to be in a stage of transformation.

Olmec eagle transformation figure, 10th–6th century B.C. Jade (albite), with cinnabar. Height: 4.5 in. (11.4 cm).

[edit] Transformation figurines

In addition to the were-jaguars, many other Olmec figurines combined human and animal features, including this were-eagle (left). Although figurines showing such combinations of features are generally termed "transformation figures", some researchers argue that they represent humans in animal masks or animal suits. Compare the transformation figurines here, and here.

[edit] Naturalistic figurines

Despite the many stylised figurines, Olmec-period artisans and artist also portrayed humans very naturalistically and with "a most extraordinary realistic technique".^[10] Examples include this bust and the figurine above, nicknamed "the wrestler".

A jade fetal-style figurine from Guerrero, Mexico. Height: 3.8 in (9.5 cm).

[edit] Fetal style figurines

Several Olmec-period "crouching" figurines seem to resemble human fetuses. Compare the figurine on the right with this and this. In their 1999 article, Carolyn Tate and Gordon Bendersky analysed head-to-body ratios and concluded that these figurines are naturalistic sculptures of fetuses, and discuss the possibility of infanticide and infant sacrifice.^[11]

[edit] Summary

Figurines from Formative Period show a consistency of style and subject throughout nearly all of Mesoamerica. While the extent of Olmec control over the areas beyond their heartland is not yet known, Olmec motifs, styles, and subjects were widespread in the centuries from 1000 to 500 BCE.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Olmec figurines

• Bailey, Douglass (2005) Prehistoric Figurines: Representation and Corporeality in the Neolithic Routledge Publishers. ISBN 0-415-33152-8
• Bradley, Douglas E., and Peter David Joralemon (1993) The Lords of Life: The Iconogaphy of Power and Fertility in Preclassic Mesoamerica, Snite Museum of Art, University of Notre Dame.
• Kubler, George (1990) The Art and Architecture of Ancient America, 3rd Edition, Yale University Press, ISBN 0-300-05325-8.
• Pool, Christopher (2007) Olmec Archaeology and Early Mesoamerica, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-78882-3.
• Scott, Sue (2000), "Figurines, Terracotta", in Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America, Evans, Susan, ed., Taylor & Francis.
• Tate, Carolyn and Bendersky, Gordon, "Olmec Sculptures of the Human Fetus" in Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, Spring 1999, pp. 1-20.(abridged version online).

[edit] Gallery

This figure combines the pudgy baby-like body with the adult elongated head. Note the characteristic downturned mouth and slit-like eyes.

A baby-face figurine from the Museo Nacional del Jade, San Jose, Costa Rica.

[edit] See also

• Olmec influences on Mesoamerican cultures - a discussion of Olmec influence outside the Olmec heartland

[edit] External links

• A comprehensive catalogue of figurines (or rather figurine fragments) recovered at the heartland site of San Andrés, with fine photos. Books and articles focus on the more artistic and complete figurines, while this collection details the entire range of figurine (fragments).
• Seated hunchback, ceramic
• Recumbent human figure, stone