Cleveland Museum of Art

Seated Figure

Date

300 BCE–700 CE (thermoluminescence date, 285 BCE–515 CE)

Medium

ceramic, slip

Culture

Mexico, Oaxaca, Zapotec style

Department

Art of the Americas

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The most famous Zapotec tomb ceramics are elaborate figural urns flanked by smaller, simpler companions similar to this one. Like other companions, this example probably belonged to a set of nearly identical figures; two others remain in Mexico. The identity of ceramic tomb figures-whether elite humans, royal ancestors, or deities-is still debated. The Zapotec developed one of Mesoamerica’s earliest writing systems, evidenced by the hieroglyphs on the headdress and chest. These are the names of calendar days, "13 Water" and "13 Flint Knife," respectively. Because people were named after the day on which they were born, one hieroglyph may identify the figure.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.