A MAYAN FIGURAL SCEPTER OF THE MAIZE GOD

JAINA, LATE CLASSIC, CA. A.D. 550-950

Details

A MAYAN FIGURAL SCEPTER OF THE MAIZE GOD
Jaina, Late Classic, ca. A.D. 550-950
The thin finial modeled in the form of a stalk of corn (Zea Mays) and used as a tubular scpeter or ritual wand representing the youthful Maize God emerging from within the long, silky leaves or 'wrappers' of the maize ear with arms crossed in a contemplative pose with finely modeled features, minute tattoos along the cheeks wearing, the tall headdress containing attributes of his role as life-giver and jade jewellery, curling tendrils forming the style and stigma of the maize plant, the sexual organ further reinforcing the god's fecond nature with extensive remains of brilliant Maya blue, a colorfast pigment compounded by mixing in organic clay to indigo-dye.
Height 5 1/2 in. (13.5 cm.)

Literature

Mary Miller, Jaina Figurines, Princeton, 1975, fig. 22.

Lot Essay

Cf. Jaina Figurines, figs. 24 and 25, for two other extant examples; Courtly Art of the Maya, pl. 21, for the most well-known depiction of the Maize God from the British Museum, with similar serene expression.

The Maize God (Num Kaak) is at the heart of Maya cosmology, the youthful figure represents the ripe grain which was the base of their agriculture and economy. The god's adventures in the Underworld as recounted in a summary fashion in the Popol Vuh, the sacred book of the Maya, and significantly his death and resurrection would influence Maya kingship. The Maya aesthetic bodily ideal is captured here in the muscular and taut lines of the torso which are equated with the stout stalk. The high-browed forehead and thick swept-back hair might be symbolic for continued fertility and abundance. For the ancient Maya the Maize God would come to represent everything that was perfect and admirable.

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