height 22 1/4in (56.5cm)
Unslipped earthenware with black-bitumen paint

Provenance:
Richard Solomon Collection, New York
Andre Emmrich Gallery, New York
Private Collection, St. Louis, Missouri, acquired from the above in the 1960s

"Collectors of Pre-Columbian ceramic sculpture are familiar with a Classic- period culture and art style from south-central Veracruz known as Remojadas (the name of a particular archaeological site, although objects in closely related styles actually come from a number of different sites in Veracruz). Remojadas ceramic figures and effigies, in a bewildering variety and exuberance comparable to the tomb sculptures of West Mexico, span the entire Classic period from A.D. 200 to 900." (Parson, 1980: p 155).

The present work is a classic representation of the Remojadas style with his austere, upright posture as if standing at guard, his costume and with his eyes fixated in a gaze as if in a trance.