Ear Ornament Artist: Unknown

A.D. 50–600

Art of the Ancient Americas

On view, 1st floor, Art of the Ancient Americas

A bearded skeletal monster encases a human face, which is little more than eyes, mouth, and a filed tooth, on this ear flare. The man's breath escapes in a long scroll, as if to reassure us that he is indeed alive. Sutures mark the bones of the monster's skull. This and 1998.91.1 form a pair to be used as ear flares or perhaps ornamentation for a headdress.

Medium

Carved and incised conch shell with cinnabar

Dimensions

2 × 1 5/8 in. (5.1 × 4.1 cm)

Credit Line

Mr. and Mrs. Allen Wardwell, B.A. 1957, Fund

Accession Number

1991.45.1

Geography

Guatemala

Culture

Guatemala, El Petén, Maya

Period

Early Classic Period

Classification

Jewelry

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Bibliography
  • Susan B. Matheson, Art for Yale: A History of the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2001), 168–69, fig. 169
  • "Acquisitions 1991," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin (1992), 163, ill
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

ear ornaments, human figures (visual works)

Technical metadata and APIs

IIIF

Open in Mirador

View IIIF manifest

The International Image Interoperability Framework, or IIIF, is an open standard for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Visit iiif.io to learn more

Linked Art

API response for this object

Linked Art is a Community working together to create a shared Model based on Linked Open Data to describe Art.