Currently not on view

Vessel in the form of a dog,
200 BCE–250 CE

Comala

Late Formative

2015-6691

Shalf-tomb Ceramics of West Mexico The cultures of western Mexico, in the present-day states of Jalisco, Nayarit, and Colima, shared a tradition of burying the deceased in deep shaft tombs located under homes. These tombs often accommodated generations of family members: when someone died, the bones of their ancestors were moved aside to create room for the new ancestor. A great variety of ceramic objects were produced in distinctive local styles to accompany the dead. Human figures might represent loved ones or key moments in the biography of the interred; animal representations might have been perceived as providing sustenance in the afterlife, or they may have been seen as eternal companions.

Information

Title

Vessel in the form of a dog

Dates

200 BCE–250 CE

Medium

Burnished, slipped ceramic

Dimensions

h. 14.5 cm., l. (max) 28.8 cm. (5 11/16 × 11 5/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Virginia and Bagley Wright Jr., Class of 1946

Object Number

2015-6691

Place Made

North America, Mexico, Colima, West Mexico

Culture

Colima

Period

Protoclassic

Type

ceramics, vessels (containers)

Materials

ceramic, clay, slip

Techniques

burnishing (polishing), slip trailing

Subject

dogs, shaft graves

September 24, 1965, sold by David Stuart Galleries, Los Angeles (stock no. F90) to Bagley Wright (1924-2011), Seattle, WA [1]; 2015, gift of Virginia and Bagley Wright Jr. to the Princeton University Art Museum. Notes: [1] According to an invoice in the curatorial file.

"Acquisitions of the Princeton University Art Museum 2015," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 75/76 (2016-17): 102-125., p. 118

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Citation

Comala, Late Formative, 200 BCE–250 CE, Colima, West Mexico, Mexico, Mesoamerica, Vessel in the form of a dog. Burnished, slipped ceramic; 14.5 × 28.8 cm. Gift of Virginia and Bagley Wright Jr., Class of 1946 (2015-6691) https://artmuseum-beta.princeton.edu/art/collections/objects/107466

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Vessel in the form of a dog, 200 BCE–250 CE

Information

Provenance

Bibliographic Entries

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