Effigy Vessel in the Form of a Jaguar

Item number 2009.2.11 from the Brooklyn Museum.

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Credit Line

Gift in memory of Frederic Zeller

Label

This Maya effigy vessel depicts the head and torso of a hunchback human figure wearing a full jaguar-skin costume. Small teeth are visible near the fangs, and hands appear above the paws. Hunchbacks and dwarves were highly respected among the Maya, frequently serving as attendants to rulers. Like the jaguar-skinned dancers depicted on cylindrical vessels, this figure may be impersonating the God of the Underworld, with the scarf around his neck symbolizing human sacrifice and death.

Esta vasija efigie Maya representa la cabeza y torso de una figura humana jorobada vestida completamente con la piel de un jaguar. Pequeños dientes son visibles al lado de los colmillos, y manos aparecen sobre las garras. Los jorobados y enanos eran muy respetados entre los Maya, frecuentemente sirviendo como asistentes de los gobernantes. Como los danzantes vestidos con piel de jaguar representados en vasijas cilíndricas, esta figura puede estar imitando al Dios del Inframundo, con el pañuelo alrededor de su cuello simbolizando sacrificio humano y muerte.