Standing priest or orator

ca. 600 - 900

Maya burials included objects that would be useful for the deceased in their voyage through the underworld, including food and drink, clothing, jewelry, and exquisitely detailed figures made as companions or perhaps gifts for the gods. Many of these figures also functioned as whistles or rattles—musical accompaniment for the afterlife.

Ceramic

9 1/2 x 3 3/4 x 3 1/8 in. (24.13 x 9.53 x 7.94 cm)

Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection

64.39

Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

Resources

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.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

Learn more about Equity at SAM