File:Guide leaflet (1901) (14745539636).jpg

Identifier: scienceguide7692amer (find matches)
Title: Guide leaflet
Year: 1901 (1900s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: American Museum of Natural History Natural history
Publisher: New York : The Museum
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: IMLS / LSTA / METRO

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ture ))ossess. By the term monu-mental it v I mean the capacity of a carvedfigure to be indefinitely enlarged or re-duced so that the sculpture, due to thebalance of the elements involved in thecomposition, is neither distorted by theone nor diminished in dignity by the other.The Xecaxa tiger, although only threeinches high, is as impressive as if it werethirty feet. The Ocosingo jades, represent-ing softer iniiuences from the Maya coun-tiy, lose nothing in comparison with themonumental reliefs with which the Mayaseidianced their stelae and temple walls.In fact, from our modern point of view,we can comprehend these minor carv-ings more readily than the great, sincea hibelot one can keep and handle, but mas- jade is amon^ tlic hardest of stones,and was most precious to the ancientCentral Americans. Tliey worked itwithout metal tcx)ls, so that the manufacture of ornaments like tiiese musthave recjuired months of labor. NewWorld jade can readily be distinguishedfrom the Old World varietv
Text Appearing After Image:
The three jade sculptures shown onthis page are am.ong the treasures ofthe American Museum of Natural His-tory. The middle photograph repre-sents a sm.all figure in the Maya stylefrom Ocosingo. Chiapas. The top andbottom figures represent the sametiger-faced divinity. The seated figures a little more than three inches high,but the upper one is more than a foot,and is the largest carved jade fromCentral America. Both carvings maybe the work of the semi-mythicalOlmecs of Vera Cruz rs \Mi:i:l(AX MUSEUM CUIDU LEAFLET sivo religious sfiilpture seems to boloiiii: totlie ircul ill wliosc lionor it was created. SriJSTiTLTKs roit Jade^faiiy iireciiish stones, like porph.vrv.Mij)eiitine, and wernerite, the native jew-elers worked in a manner similar to jade.Ierliaps tliev eould not distinguish theseminerals from jade, or perhaps they knewthat through tlie sul)stitution of softerstones tliev couhl attain the same effectaeliieved in liie harder and rarer medium.That extraordinary grou)) of sculpt

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