Maskette

Dateca. 900 - 400 B.C.

Label TextSoft, fleshy figures, some seeming to represent babies, were made by the Olmec as monumental heads, ceramic figures, and diminutive maskettes. The Olmec considered jade their most precious material because it was associated with water and water’s life-giving forces. It amazes us today that this hard stone was tuned into such a delicate sculptural creation.

Object number82.165

Photo CreditPhoto: Elizabeth Mann

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Art of the Ancient Americas, July 10, 1999 - May 11, 2003. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Cosmic Beings in Mesoamerican and Andean Art, Nov. 10, 2018 - ongoing.Published ReferencesMiller, Mary. "Art of Oceania, Mesoamerica, and the Andes." In Selected Works, pp. 59-64. Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 1991; p. 59, reproduced.

Credit LineGift of John H. Hauberg

Dimensions3 1/16 x 2 5/16 x 1 1/2 in. (7.78 x 5.91 x 3.81 cm)

MediumStone