Male Captive Artist: Unknown

A.D. 600–900

Art of the Ancient Americas

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

Dignified even in captivity, this standing man awaits his death. He wears the torn cloth strips of sacrificial victims through his ears, and fragments remain of the rope that once bound his neck. Beads of blood or scarification mark his face on his left temple and take the form of the Jester God, a symbol of rulership. This terracotta representation probably commemorates the captive's death and may have been a trophy for the tomb of his victorious captor.

Medium

Ceramic with pigment

Dimensions

9 3/4 × 4 in. (24.8 × 10.16 cm)

Credit Line

Purchased with a bequest from Joan B. Rapp, B.L.S. 1991

Accession Number

2009.32.1

Geography

Mexico

Culture

Mexico, probably Campeche, Jaina Island, Maya

Period

Late Classic Period

Classification

Sculpture

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.

Provenance
ex collection Joan Rapp, acquired by her in the 1960s
Bibliography
  • "Acquisitions," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin: Online Supplement (accessed 2012),
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

funerary art, human figures (visual works), sculptures

Subject

men standing

Technical metadata and APIs

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