Carved Vase

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Culture Maya

Title Carved Vase

Date 700–800

Medium Clay

Dimensions Object: 5 1/4 × 5 1/2 in. (13.3 × 14 cm)
Overall: 5 1/4 x 5 1/2 in. (13.3 x 14 cm)

Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University

Accession Number 73.10.2

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About this Work

Part of a tradition of richly decorated ceramics, carved vases such as this also recall Maya monumental stone relief carving. All carved Maya ceramics are decorated before firing: after the clay has dried to leather hardness, they are incised and then painted with slip or simply burnished, as in this example. The vase shows a Maya male with elaborate headdress and jewelry. More significantly, though, patches on the figure’s back arm and thigh, known as “god markings,” identify him as a divinity rather than a mere noble.

Provenance
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Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Carved Vase | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=73.10.2