FILTER RESULTS
Incense Burner: Figure of Macuilxóchitl
1300-150019 in. (48.3 cm)
Mixtec artist
Mexico
Mixtec; made in Teotitlan del Camino, Oaxaca, Mexico
Object Type:
Ceramics
Medium and Support:
Clay, pigment
Credit Line:
Marion Stratton Gould Fund
Accession Number:
1969.22
Location: Currently on view
Macuilxochitl, whose name means “Five Flower,” was the charming Mixtec patron god of dance, feasting, love, sexuality, and summer. Representations of Macuilxochitl were favored by women for their domestic shrines. Despite the seemingly fierce appearance of this figure, Macuilxochitl is identifiable by the flowers on his headband, the white butterfly wings around his mouth, and the vertical element of his helmet representing the crest of a bird.
This object would have been placed over burning incense that produced a great deal of smoke. The thick, white smoke that exited through the holes in the figure’s chest may have represented mother’s milk. The smoke that exited through the figure’s mouth may have been a form of communication with the gods. This complex object was a manifestation of life and agricultural cycles, transformation and renewal.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
This object would have been placed over burning incense that produced a great deal of smoke. The thick, white smoke that exited through the holes in the figure’s chest may have represented mother’s milk. The smoke that exited through the figure’s mouth may have been a form of communication with the gods. This complex object was a manifestation of life and agricultural cycles, transformation and renewal.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
Provenance
William C. Nash, Rochester; purchased from him by the Gallery in 1969
Keywords
Click a term to view the records with the same keyword
Additional Images
Click an image to view a larger version
Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Circus Minimus Memorial Art Gallery 9/5/1969 - 11/30/1969
- Before Cortés: Sculpture of Middle America 9/30/1970 - 1/3/1971
- Harris K. Prior Memorial Exhibition 4/2/1976 - 5/2/1976
Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Susan Dodge Peters, ed. Memorial Art Gallery: An Introduction to the Collection. New York, New York: Memorial Art Gallery in association with Hudson Hills Press, 1988.
- Article Title: Acquisitions. Article Scope: Article. Memorial Art Gallery. Gallery Notes. Rochester, New York: Memorial Art Gallery, 1935-1995. Volume Number: 35, Issue Number: 4. Issue Date: December 1969.
- Article Scope: Entry and reproduction. Elizabeth Kennedy Easby and John F. Scott. Before Cortés: Sculpture of Middle America, A Centennial Exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, NY: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1970.
Portfolio List
Click a portfolio name to view all the objects in that portfolio
This object is a member of the following portfolios: