cross art

Seated with legs crossed, a man with the head of a bird holds an artifact depicting a cross. This cross shape forms windows in several structures in the archaeological site of Palenque, in Southwestern Mexico, and a glyph referring to the birdman is found on stelae there. Working in ceramic, artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association create a polychrome replica of an image discovered in Tomb One. The original is on display in the museum at the site itself.

Chaac, the Maya lord of rain, sits on his throne with arms crossed in front at his chest, regarded as an unusual depiction for this deity which artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association replicate from a sculpture dated 250-800 AD. This anthropomorphic image fuses reptilian or amphibian characteristics with that of an elderly human. The artisans sculpt this ceramic piece with sublime detail, including a throne separately from the sculpture.

A Maya woman sits with legs crossed as she works on a backstrap loom. Rocking back and forth she controls the tension as she creates an expanse of cloth. "This movement represented the human heartbeat, thus weaving was a sacred act for the ancient Maya, and weavers were considered the 'mothers of creation,'" Nicolas Chavez Sojuel explains. He works in fragrant cedar wood to depict his subject as realistically as did the pre-Hispanic ceramists of Jaina Island more than a thousand years ago in their "Female Figure with Loom." Deftly carving intricate details with superb realism, the Guatemalan artisan dresses the woman in a necklace of pinewood beads.

A Mayan midwife is realized in cedar atop a pinewood base. Guatemalan artist Nicolas Chavez Sojuel hand-carves this sculpture, detailing the midwife's elaborate jewelry and headdress. She sits with legs crossed, a child held close to her breast. For the artist, this sculpture presents a view of quotidian Mayan life, as the midwives would often take their children along with them as they worked.

Seated with legs crossed, a Maya bird man gestures with his hands as he speaks. Nicolas Chavez Sojuel works in fragrant cedar wood to depict an image from the archaeological site of Palenque. Dating from the 8th century, the beautiful necropolis was the westernmost point in the ancient Maya empire. The original bird man was sculpted of terracotta and painted in shades of blue. It was discovered in Tomb One and is on display in the site museum.

The headdress is detachable for shipping.