great sculpture

Legend tells how Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, created the human race. However, in doing so, he had to confront Mictlantecuhtli, the god of death. Inspired by this story, artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association create an original mask that is faithful to Mexico's ancient books and archaeological record.

Luis Alberto Gutiérrez pays tribute to his country's pre-Columbian heritage with this striking ceramic sculpture painted with a terracotta color created using pulverized stone. Long-tailed lizards appear to crawl up each of the handmade sculpture's three slender legs, while two rings of dots adorn the base of the vessel's long neck. The tripod's design is influenced by similar ceramic objects crafted by Costa Rica's indigenous peoples many centuries ago. "These are the vessels our ancestors used in funeral rituals, where they deposited the funeral remains together with other ceramic pieces and metals; these pieces carry with them a great deal of history and they comprise many years of antiquity," explains the artisan.

Oscar Rodolfo Mendoza celebrates the art of the Maya with this unique terracotta replica. It is crafted by hand with the same ceramic techniques developed by the Maya Pipil people. It is painted by hand featuring the legendary Maya iconography and it is treated to achieve an antiqued look.

Seemingly surprised, this exquisite visage half closes his eyes and appears to yawn. Daniel Nyadedzor carves an appealing rotund design accentuated by elaborate West African motifs. Asepa ye means "my great in-law." Celebrants throughout Ghana use this traditional round mask widely. Nyadedzor expertly crafts it from native sese wood, carving it to shape and sanding it. The piece is then masterfully adorned with aluminum plates and finished with neutral polish. Infused with the wisdom of the ancestors, this mask adds cryptic beauty to any decor.

Working in the style of ancient Java, Suparta carves a portrait of the Hindu god, Shiva, one of the most complex gods in Hindu faith, embodying seemingly contradictory qualities. He is both destroyer and restorer; the great ascetic and the symbol of sensuality; the benevolent herdsman of souls and the wrathful avenger. Coiled around his neck, a cobra symbolizes his divine destructive power. His gesture is known as vitarka, or the "gesture of debate.