Ear Ornament

Description

Near Teotihuacán's largest palace is a small temple gorgeously ornamented with green-feathered serpents, symbols of the earth's fertility. Beneath the temple lie at least 120 human sacrifices, most men, many warriors, and some wearing greenstone ornaments like these, perhaps a set. The sacrifices, apparently laid out to mark the cardinal directions, may have consecrated the temple or a ruler's tomb, or both.

Provenance

Valetta Swan; James and Florence Gruener, Cleveland (1965 ); (Valetta Swan); James and Florence Gruener, Cleveland, 1965

Ear Ornament

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150–200 CE

Accession Number

1990.264.2

Medium

jadeite-albitite(?)

Dimensions

Diameter: 5.7 cm (2 1/4 in.); Overall: 2.6 cm (1 in.)

Classification

Sculpture

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James C. Gruener