The process of modeling these heads was about as follows: The upper end of the leg—the head of the fish—was first rounded off, giving the general shape; then parallel incisions were made to represent the teeth, and around these a fillet of clay was laid, forming the lips, which were then channeled with a sharp tool. Nodes or flattened pellets of clay, representing the gills, snout, and eyes, were then laid on and finished with incision-like indentations. The handles consist of bird-like heads, with protruding eyes and long bills that curve downward and connect with the shoulder of the vase. The body is rudely spotted with red.
A large, uncouth specimen is shown in Fig. 146. The legs are ponderous and are not neatly adjusted to the vessel. A meander pattern of incised lines encircles the neck and the body is rudely decorated with broad red stripes.
Fig. 146. High tripod vase with incised designs and rude figures in red—⅓.
There is a general consistency in the use of life forms which is worthy of notice. The fish and other creatures used, although variously conceived and treated, are never confused. When the fish is employed no features suggesting other animals appear and when the heads of other creatures occupy the upper extremity of the leg all the details refer to these creatures with uniform consistency. In Fig. 147 we have an unusually graceful shape, decorated about the neck with scrolls and indented fillets. The legs represent some reptilian form resembling a lizard. The head projects from the hip and is conventionally treated. A round fillet fixed at its middle point to the muzzle of the creature is turned back at the sides of the head and coiled to form the eyes. The forelegs are attached at the sides near the top and the recurved terminal point is encircled by rings that stand for the coiled tail.
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| Fig. 147. Handsome tripod vase with scroll ornament—⅓. | Fig. 148. Vase with lizard shaped legs—⅓. |
There is little room for doubt as to the kind of creature represented in the legs of the vase given in Fig. 148. The head, legs, and general shape are characteristic of the lizard. The vessel is small, plain, and neatly finished. In Fig. 149 the legs of the vessel, otherwise quite plain, are surmounted by heads that seem to represent a dog or some like animal. A series of neat vertically placed scrolls formed of round fillets encircles the neck, and below these is a band in relief imitating a twisted cord.
Fig. 149. Vase with scroll ornament—⅓.
A vase of unusually striking appearance is presented in Fig. 150. It is one of the largest tripods in the collection and is characterized by a high widely expanded lip and a long conical body and by legs of unusual size and conformation. Small animal figures are perched upon the projecting hips. The surface of the vessel is rudely finished and is much blackened by smoke about the upper part of the legs and the body.
Fig. 150. Large vase with flaring rim and wide spreading legs—⅓.
A unique use of the animal form is illustrated in Fig. 151, which shows a large fragment of one of these tripods. The figure of an alligator, modeled with a great deal of spirit, is attached to the side of the vessel, resting partly upon the leg and extending upward obliquely to the lip. A similar figure upon the opposite side of the same vase is represented as grasping the form of a man or boy in its formidable looking jaws.
Fig. 151. Fragment of a tripod vase embellished with the figure of an alligator.
The alligator, rarely employed in this group of ware, is freely used in other groups and was probably a creature of importance in the mythology of Chiriqui.
In one case only, so far as I have seen, is the human form employed in the supports of these vessels, and in that case, as will be seen in Fig. 152, the result is extremely grotesque. The shape of the basin is good and the thick, rounded lip and most of the surface are carefully polished. A disconnected meander of incised lines encircles the rather high neck, and parts of the body and its attached features are painted red. As usual this color was applied along with the slip and in polishing has become much mixed up with it, giving a mottled effect. The handles take the form of curious human-appearing figures which sit against the constricted neck, their heads supporting the rim and their feet resting upon the shoulder of the vessel. In one case the hands are held tightly against the lower part of the face and in the other they are bound together against the chin by a serpent-like cord of clay. The hollow figures forming the legs of the vase are as grotesque as could well be imagined. There is no head whatever, and the outlandish features are placed upon the front of the upper part of the body. The arms and hands take the conventional position characteristic of the statuary of the isthmian states and the only traces of costume are bands about the wrists and a girdle encircling the lower part of the body.
Fig. 152. Vase supported by grotesque human figures—⅓.
I add, in Fig. 153, one more example, a large, full bodied vase, which, more decidedly perhaps than any of the foregoing, proclaims its relationship to the preceding group. If the three rather clumsy legs were knocked off there would remain a large beautifully shaped and finished vase, with a constricted but flaring rim not in any way distinguishable from those of the preceding group. The legs in this case are less perfectly adapted to the vessel than in the other examples, as if the potter, skillful in modeling the vessel, had only recently undertaken to add the tripod. The slit in the outer face of the leg is unusually wide and the inclosed ball is three-fourths of an inch in diameter. The most remarkable feature of this vessel is the pair of unique figures affixed to the upper surface of the body near the lip, and which would seem to be intended to represent semihuman monsters. The arms and legs are contorted and serpent-like in appearance and terminate in most cases in heads of serpents instead of in hands and feet. The attitude is expressive of agony or horror. It seems to me probable that, contrary to the rule in primitive art, these strange figures do not embody any well defined or serious conception, but are rather exhibitions of the fancy of the potter. They occupy small unpainted panels, which are finished in neat incised patterns. The remaining surface is a bright red.
Fig. 153. Round bodied vase embellished with figures of monsters—⅓.
It may be noted, in recapitulation, that these vases, although elaborately modeled and often well finished, are rudely decorated and very generally show use over fire; that the legs, though often graceful and well proportioned, are in many cases clumsily adjusted to the body, giving a decidedly unsatisfactory result as a whole. This ware was devoted to domestic uses, or, if otherwise, in all probability to the burning of incense. Animal forms are freely employed, but in a rather rude way. The fish form is more generally used than any other, and is in all cases embodied in the legs of the vessel, the head joining the body of the vessel and the tail resting upon the ground. These representations exhibit all grades of elaboration from the fairly well modeled to the merest suggestion of animal character—any one feature, as the mouth, the eye, the fins, or the tail, being alone a sufficient suggestion of the creature to satisfy the potter and keep alive the idea of the fish. Other animal forms are employed in modeling the legs, and exhibit equally varying degrees of elaboration, and it is worthy of especial note that creatures are not confused or confounded, so far as I can discover, at any stage of the simplifying process—that a fish is still purely a fish if nothing is left to represent it but a node or an incision. There is no apparent relationship between the animal forms forming the legs and those attached to the body or to the rim of the vessel.
The pottery of the two groups already presented exhibits characters so uniform throughout that there need be no hesitation in placing them together as the work of one community and of one period of practice of the art; but between these groups and those that follow there is a wide gap. The differences are so marked that, if they had come from widely separated localities, very intimate relationships would not have been suggested.
Fig. 154. Cup with incurved rim and life form ornamentation—½.
Fig. 155. Cup with widely expanded rim and constricted neck—½.
The maroon group.—
For the want of a better name I have called the group first to be presented the maroon group, on account of its color. Our collection comprises not more than a dozen pieces of this ware. The locality from which they come is called Los Tenajos by Mr. McNiel, but he has not distinguished them in any way from the other varieties, and I am therefore unable to say whether or not they occur together with others or under identical conditions. In symmetry of outline, diversity of shape, and cleverness of modeling this ware takes a high rank, but there is no painted ornament. The surfaces are usually well polished, and all exposed parts have received a coat of purplish maroon colored paint. The paste contains a great deal of fine sand, and is yellowish upon the surface and generally quite dark within the mass. Considering the small number of pieces, the scale of form is remarkably varied. There are plain bowls with incurved rims and with flaring rims, vases with round bases, with annular stands, and with tripods, and life forms wholly unique. Perhaps the most usual form is that shown in Fig. 154, which represents a small cup with incurved rim and a narrow annular base. The shoulder is embellished with three groups of small nodes, of four each, which refer to some animal form. In other similar vases the form of the creature is given in more realistic guise. A larger vase, similar to this in most respects, has a rounded contour and incurved lip. The periphery is supplied with four plain nodes. Another, shown in Fig. 155, has a wide recurved rim, a character seen to equally good advantage in some of the following figures. In the small vase represented in Fig. 156 the treatment of animal forms in connection with the body of the vessel is shown to good advantage. The head, legs, and tail of what is probably intended to represent an alligator, modeled in the round, are attached to the periphery of the basin, and heads of some mammal are used for legs.
Fig. 156. Small tripod cup with animal features in high relief—½.
A most interesting tripod is shown in Fig. 157. The bowl is beautifully modeled, is symmetrical, and has a flaring rim, rounded and polished on the upper surface and drooping slightly at the outer margin. The body is hemispherical and is supported by three grotesque anthropomorphic figures that strongly remind us of the “mud head” masks used in one of the dances of the Zuñi Indians. The head is a rounded ball, upon which pellets of clay are stuck to represent the features. The arms are set against the sides of the body, as in other isthmian specimens, the hips are excessively large, the legs straight, and the feet small and united to form the foot of the vessel. Nearly the entire surface is finished in a dark purplish red paint, which appears to have been polished down as a slip. A companion piece is considerably smaller and the supporting figures are very grotesque and somewhat crouched, as if bearing a very heavy weight.
Fig. 157. Handsome vase supported by three grotesque figures—½.
A number of large basins or caldrons, collected in Chiriqui, and fragments of vessels of extraordinary size resemble this ware in material, color, and finish. The rims of the larger pieces are upwards of an inch thick and the walls are in cases three-fourths of an inch thick. A number of large vessels of similar ware now in the National Museum were collected in Costa Rica and Nicaragua.
The red line group.—
The group of vessels to which I have given this name is represented by about a dozen specimens, which indicate a wide range of form and exhibit a number of unique characters.
The localities from which they are derived extend from 8° 20´ to 8° 40´ north latitude and from 82° 40´ to 82° 50´ west longitude.
The paste is of about the usual composition, but takes a variety of tints on burning, a light gray orange prevailing. The finish of the surface is about the same as in other groups. The decoration consists of life forms and their conventional representatives in relief and of carelessly executed geometric designs, the pigment used being a bright, sienna-like red.
As will be seen by reference to the illustrations, the forms are varied and pleasing, but for the most part repeat outlines common to other groups. The handles, single or in twos, are upright loops, and the tripods are in nearly all cases looped or annular, an unusual feature in other groups.
I present three illustrations, two of which were given in outline in the introductory pages. The first (Fig. 158) has a well proportioned, somewhat globular body, supported by three legs formed of looped bands of clay. On the shoulder are two small animal forms, probably meant for frogs. The spaces between these are occupied by panel-like arrangements of red lines. The surface is yellowish gray in color, excepting where blackened in the baking. The paste has cracked in firing, a feature observed in a number of pieces belonging to this group.
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| Fig. 158. Vase decorated with figures of frogs and devices in red—½. | Fig. 159. Vase of unique shape and life form ornamentation—½. |
A unique piece is represented in Fig. 159. The single handle is a high projecting loop and connects with the margin of the orifice, which rises to meet it, and with the lower part of the shoulder. An animal form, apparently anthropomorphic, is embodied in this vessel. The upper part of the vessel, separated by a slight constriction from the body proper, represents the head of the creature, the nose, mouth, and eyes appearing on the front and the ears at the sides. A few incised lines seen upon the inner surface of the handle stand for the hair. Upon the shoulder are two sharp nodes, standing for the breasts, and between these are markings that represent a necklace. A rude design in red lines covers the upper surface of the body.
Fig. 160. Two handled vase with life form and linear decoration—½.
A graceful shape is illustrated in Fig. 160. The paste is a grayish orange on the surface and is rather dark within the thicker portions of the walls. The under surface is much blackened by use over fire. An interesting feature is seen upon the handles at the highest point of the loop. Instead of the single indented transverse fillet observed in similar forms in other groups, we have two such features, set about an inch apart, and between them are two indented nodes which stand for eyes, and a number of indentations within the space refer to other features of the animal suggested. Upon the shoulder and collar of the vessel are carelessly drawn geometric patterns in red lines.
The white line group.—
One group of vases, of which we have but four pieces, is characterized by the use of a whitish pigment in decoration. Not one of the collections that I have seen is well supplied with this class of ware, and hence little can be said of its varieties of form and ornament. All are tripods, but the shapes of the vessels vary considerably. Two small pieces are from latitude 8° 40´ north and longitude 82° 32´ west. One of these is shown in Fig. 161. They are small, rather carelessly finished tripods, with narrow necks and flattened bodies. The inner surface of the orifice and the under side of the body are painted a dull red. The remainder of the surface is a warm reddish gray, the color of the slip and the paste. The legs in the piece figured represent some small creature with a rabbit-like face and a body which tapers gradually to the base. Two feet are placed near the middle of the body, which is striped transversely with white lines. A white collar crosses the neck and the eyes are white dots. The upper surface of the vase is embellished with two animal figures, executed in a white earthy pigment. They may refer to the alligator, but the drawing is too conventional to admit of full identification. The companion piece is a little larger, and the upper surface is decorated with three groups of broad white stripes, bordered by rows of dots, which extend from the base of the neck to the periphery of the body. The legs are similar to those of the other piece. The little animal figure fixed to the upper end or hip is identical with that seen in the following illustration.
The large tripod vase presented in Fig. 162 is distinct in many ways from anything in the collection and is remarkable for symmetry of form and neatness of finish. The body is a long, symmetrical cone and the legs are long, straight cylinders, neatly rounded off to a point below. A thick rim projects at a sharp angle and is rounded up toward the margin. The legs are hollow, and through two pairs of lateral slits a number of small pellets can be seen, which rattle when the vase is moved. Rudely modeled little animals, with erect ears, large feet, and conical tails, are fixed to the upper end of the legs. The ground color, the slip, and the paste are of a reddish gray cast. The greater part of the surface seems to have been painted red, but the vase has been used over fire to such an extent that little of the original color remains. The body and the legs have been decorated with geometric patterns in a whitish pigment that can be scraped off like indurated clay. The little animal figures were also painted white. A vase very similar to this, from which the legs have been removed, and the surface smoothed down, has a longer and more graceful body and a similar rim. Another piece, exhibiting similar yet even more strongly marked characteristics of shape, belongs to the collection of Mr. J. B. Stearns.
Fig. 162. Shapely vase with designs in white paint—½.
The lost color group.—
In number of specimens this group is second to none, excepting perhaps that given under the head of terra cotta ware. Nine-tenths of the pieces may be classed as bottles, which have rather short, wide necks and globular bodies, slightly conical below and in cases flattened above. They range in size from one inch to nearly a foot in height, but the average capacity is not above a pint. Aside from the bottles there is a wide range of shapes. There are shallow bowls and various complex and compound forms. Animal forms are associated with all classes of vessels. Tripod supports are limited to rather modest proportions, and handles, although often present and greatly varied in style, do not constitute an important feature. These vessels are remarkably well preserved and exhibit few traces of abrasion by use or of blackening over fire. The paste is fine grained and usually of a light yellow gray tint throughout.
The surface was finished either in a light colored slip or in a strong red pigment. In some cases the light tint was used exclusively and again the red covered the entire surface, but more frequently the two were used together, occupying distinct areas of the same vessel and forming the groundwork for decorative patterns in other colors. They were usually polished down with very great care, giving a glistening surface, upon which the markings of the tool can still be seen.
I have already described the methods of decoration, but may review them briefly here. The bright red color, which forms such a prominent and pleasing feature, is, as stated above, only a ground tint and is not used in any case in the delineation of design. The actual patterns, so varied and interesting, were worked out in a pigment or fluid now totally lost, but which has left traces of its former existence through its effect upon the ground colors. In beginning the decoration, a thin black color, probably of vegetal character, was carried over the area to be treated, and upon this the figures were traced in the lost color. When this color (if it was indeed a pigment, and not merely an acid or “taking out” medium) disappeared, it carried with it the black tint beneath, exposing the light gray and red tints of the ground and leaving the interstices in black. The interstitial figures thus formed are often of such a character as to be taken for the true design. In examining the decoration of this ware it is essential that this fact should be kept in mind, as otherwise great confusion will result.
The nature of the materials employed cannot be determined. Applied to the polished surface, they were easily removed. The black ground tint is now easily rubbed off and in most cases is much injured by handling or by contact with the soil. The lost color may have been similar to the white, argillaceous pigment used by the Aztecs, which has in many cases partially or wholly disappeared, leaving its marks upon the ground either by deadening the polish or by removing portions of the slip and the paste upon which it was laid, presenting the ornament in intaglio.
The designs are infinitely varied in appearance and arrangement, yet are far from having a mixed or heterogeneous character. It is probably our lack of knowledge of the origin and history of the elements and their derivations that causes confusion. Both geometric and imitative elements abound and are blended in perfectly graded series. The treatment of geometric figures is peculiar to Chiriqui and in many respects is peculiar to this group of ware. Classic forms, such as the meander, the scroll, and the fret, rarely occur and are barely recognizable. It appears from a close study of all the work that motives derived from nature have greatly leavened the whole body of decoration. This matter will receive attention as the examples are presented and will be treated with greater care in a succeeding section.
Plastic decoration, aside from the life forms so commonly associated with the body of the vase and with the handles and legs, is not of importance. The high degree of polish required in this ware tended to simplify all relieved features.
The presence of life forms in relief has produced important modifications in the appearance and the arrangement of the painted devices, and in many cases there is a manifest correlation between the plastic and the painted forms: as, for example, when the body of the vase was thought of as the body of the animal, the extremities of which were placed upon its sides, the colored figures carried out the idea of the creature by imitating in a more or less conventional way the markings of the body. This will be understood through reference to the examples presented in the following pages.
I will present, first, a series of bottles, selecting at the beginning those decorated in the more purely geometric style and gradually approaching those upon which animal forms are treated in a literal manner. The few pieces selected for illustration are totally inadequate to the proper representation of the group and must be regarded only as average specimens, more or less typical in character.
Fig. 163. Small red bottle with horizontal bands of ornament consisting of plain and scalloped lines—½.
I give first a number of examples in which the decorative devices are arranged in horizontal zones. In Fig. 163 broad bands of ornament, consisting of scalloped and plain lines, encircle the neck and the body of the vessel. In finishing this piece the whole surface was painted a rich red and highly polished; then a black coat was applied, covering the body from the lip to the base of the design; and finally the delineating fluid was applied, removing the black, as shown in the narrow lines, the sharply dentate bands, and the broad, plain band between. The second example (Fig. 164) varies somewhat in shape and design, but is identical in color and manipulation. The dark figures are merely the interspaces, although they appear at first glance to have been intended for the design proper.
Fig. 164. Small red bottle with encircling geometric devices—½.
In a numerous series of vessels the decorated bands are divided into compartments or panels, often four in number, which spaces are occupied by lines and figures of greatly diversified characters. In the example shown in Fig. 165 the ground color of the principal zone is in the light yellow gray tint of the slip, the remainder being red. This lends brilliancy to the effect.
Fig. 165. Bottle with zone occupied by geometric devices—½.
Fig. 166. Bottle with broad zone containing geometric figures—½.
In the vase shown in Fig. 166 the treatment is in a general way the same, but the compartments are triangular and are separated by lines that form a disconnected meander. An additional example is given in Fig. 167. Here the principal zone is expanded to cover the whole upper surface of the vase, which was finished in the light colored slip to receive it. The principal lines are arranged to give the effect of rays when viewed from above, but as seen in the cut they give the effect of a carelessly connected meander. The groups of lines are bordered by series of dots. A great number of pieces are painted in this style. The effect is varied by altering the shape of the interspaces or by modifying the number and relationship of the lines, dots, and figures.
Fig. 167. Bottle with decoration of meandered lines—½.
Fig. 168. Bottle with arched panels and geometric devices—½.
Somewhat similar also in general effect to the last example is the work upon another important series of vases. Instead of the simple meandered or zigzag arrangement of parts, two of the dividing lines of the zone run tangent to the neck of the vase on opposite sides, forming arched panels and leaving upright panels between. In the example presented in Fig. 168 the arched areas are filled in with lattice-like arrangements of lines. In others we have dots, checkers, and varied geometric combinations, and in very many cases the figures are derived from life forms. The same may be said of the devices that occupy the spaces between the arches. The piece shown in Fig. 169 exhibits a somewhat more elaborate treatment, but the motives and arrangements are much the same. These vessels are peculiar in the treatment of the ground. The entire surface is red, with the exception of narrow bands of light ground color, which outline the arches and encircle the periphery. In other cases these bands are red, the remainder of the ground being light. Series of lines are drawn from the lower border of the zone to the center of the base of the body.
Fig. 169. Bottle with arched panels and elaborate devices—½.
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| Fig. 170. Vase with rosette-like panels—½. | Fig. 170a. Ornament from vase shown in Fig. 170. |
In a small group of vases we have a radiate ornament within the arches and in a few cases the arched lines are continued down around the base of the vessel, forming vertical circles in which rosette-like designs are formed by repeating the radiate figures in an inverted position below the peripheral line. The elaboration in these circular inclosures is very remarkable, as will be seen by reference to the three examples given in Figs. 170, 171, and 172. In the first case the peripheral line is a red band nearly one-half an inch wide and the rays appear in groups above and below it. Within the four broader black rays (Fig. 170a), which are the interspaces or remnants of the ground, groups of lines have been drawn, in most cases curved at the inner ends like an opening frond and accompanied in all cases by series of dots. An examination of a number of vessels shows various degrees of convention. It is clear, however, that these devices, showing curves, hooks, and dots, are not of technical or mechanical origin, but that they refer to delineative originals of which they are survivals; but we must remain in the dark as to what the originals were or what was the precise nature of the idea associated with them in the mind of the decorator. Another question refers to the arrangement of the parts of the design in the five preceding figures. The distribution of the designs is a matter of great interest, and much may be learned from a close study of these specimens.
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| Fig. 171. Vase with rosette-like panels—½. | Fig. 172. Vase with rosette-like panels—½. |
Horizontal zones appear in the ceramic decoration of all countries, and result, no doubt, from technical causes; but the division of zones into compartments of peculiar shape is due to other influences. I believe the peculiar arched arrangement here seen results from the employment of plastic features, such as handles or life forms. The ancient races were accustomed to conceive of the vessel as the body of an animal, an idea originating in the association of mythologic conceptions with art. The head and the tail of the particular creature thought of were attached to opposite sides of the vase and consequently interfered with the original zonal arrangement of the design where it existed, or where it did not exist the sides were filled with devices representing the markings of the creature’s body. The decoration now consisted of four parts, two in the round or in relief and two in color, the former occupying small areas and the latter wide areas, as seen in Fig. 173. The same result would spring from the use of two handles, such a common feature in this ware. The lateral spaces reached from the periphery to the base of the neck and were most readily and naturally separated from the plastic features by lines extending across the shoulder tangent to the neck and forming arches (Fig. 174). In time the plastic features, being difficult to manage, would gradually decrease in boldness of modeling and finally disappear, leaving a space upon which the life form could be symbolized in color (Fig. 175). Now it happens that in this collection we have a series of examples illustrating all stages of this change, the first, the middle, and the final steps being shown in the above figures.
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| Theoretical origin of the arched panels. | ||
In multiplying these vessels the original forms and associations of decorative features are necessarily to some extent lost sight of; the panels change in shape, number, and relationships; and devices originally appropriate to particular spaces are employed indiscriminately, so that the uninitiated see nothing but confusion. All devices are delineations of or have more or less definite reference to the creature or spirit associated with the vessel.
Fig. 176. Vase decorated with conventional figures of alligators—½.
I will now pass over the many hundreds of pieces with designs too conventional to furnish a clew to the original animal forms, yet still suggesting their existence, to those in which the life forms can be traced with ease or in which they are delineated with a much nearer approach to nature. The manner of introducing life forms into the panels of the encircling zones is illustrated in the following figures. In the vase shown in Fig. 176 there are four panels, two short and two long, separated by vertical bands. The short panels are black, but the long ones are occupied by rudely drawn figures of alligators, some of which are very curiously abbreviated. At the right hand in the cut we have simply the head with its strong recurved jaws and notched crest. The principal figure at the left is a two headed alligator, the body being straight and supplied with two feet. The ground finish of the decorated band is in the light gray tint and the alligator figures and vertical septa now appear in that color. The ground of the remainder of the surface is red. It will be seen that in this case the panel outlines are rather elaborate and that the neck and base are striped in a way to enhance considerably the beauty of the vessel. Additional examples of animal devices are given in Figs. 177 and 178. The significance of the curious figure seen in the first is not easily determined, although we do not hesitate to assign to it an animal origin. There is a suggestion of two sitting figures placed back to back between the upright serrate lines. In the second piece, which is from another vessel, the space between the serrate lines is occupied by a sketchy figure which, in the phraseology of heraldry, may be likened to a monkey rampant.
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| Portions of decorated zones illustrating treatment of life forms. | |
Fig. 179. Vase decorated with highly conventional life forms—½.
Fig. 179a. Design from vase shown in Fig. 179.
In Figs. 179 and 180 I present very interesting examples in which the arched panels are used. In the first the compartments are occupied by a favorite Chiriquian motive, which consists of groups of lines curled up at one end like unfolding fronds. The whole group represents a very highly conventionalized animal figure (Fig. 179a). The devices occupying the upright panels take the place of the animal heads shown in several preceding figures. In the arched panels shown in Fig. 180 we have the frond-like motive treated in a manner to make it pretty certain that a reptilian form is intended. These figures are fully and systematically presented in a succeeding section.
Fig. 180. Vase decorated with highly conventional life forms—½.
Many of these globular vases are unusually handsome. The polished ground is red or is varied with stripes or panels of the whitish slip. Over this ground the whole surface was painted black and then the lost color was employed to work out the design. The coiled figures were produced by drawing the lines in the lost color. The interspaces were then roughly gone over with the same pigment in such a way as to leave the figures inclosed within rather uneven black borders. The presentation of these ornaments brings me naturally to the consideration of a number of very puzzling forms which, if taken alone, must inevitably be referred to vegetal originals. In Fig. 181 we have a handsomely shaped vessel, finished in a polished red ground and decorated in the usual manner. In the main zone—here rather high up on the vase—there is a series of upright figures resembling stalks or stems with scroll-like branches springing from the sides. The stalks are probably the septa of the panels and the leaves are the usual reptilian symbols. About the widest part of the body of the vase is a band of ornament probably representing an animal.
Fig. 181. Vase decorated with highly conventional life forms—½.
Fig. 182. Decorated panel with devices resembling vegetal growths, but probably of animal origin—½.
A still more remarkable ornament is shown in Fig. 182. The decorated zone of the vessel from which this is taken is divided into three panels, each of which contains stem-like figures terminating in flower shaped heads and uniting in a most remarkable way animal derivatives and vegetal forms. I am inclined to the view that here, as in the preceding case, the resemblance to a vegetal growth is purely adventitious.
Fig. 183. Example of vase of unusual shape—½.
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| Examples of vases of unusual shapes—½. | |
In striking contrast with the globular forms just given are the angular outlines presented in the following illustrations. The first is flattened above, the body being much expanded horizontally and having a sharp peripheral angle. Upon the shoulder, occupying the places of and probably standing for animal heads, are two cruciform nodes, about which the scroll-like decorations of the upper surface are coiled. We see by this that in the mind of the potter a correlation existed between the plastic and the painted devices even in these conventional decorations. The second illustration represents a neatly finished bottle, with upright sides and conical base, upon the shoulder of which minute animal figures are perched. The painted design is nearly obliterated. The third example is unique. The sides are upright and the bottom is flat. The ornament occupies the entire surface and is divided into two sections or zones by a red band about the middle.
Complex and compound forms are comparatively rare. A double vessel is shown in Fig. 186, and a second, varying somewhat from the first in shape and ornamentation, is presented in the succeeding figure. Vessels of this form are always small, but are neatly constructed and finished with much care. The strong handles are more or less arched and connect the inner margins of the two lips. The bodies of the twin cups are closely joined, but the two compartments are not connected.
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| Fig. 186. Double vessel with high arched handle—½. | Fig. 187. Double vessel with arched handle—½. |
It seems impossible to present a satisfactory series of the plastic features characteristic of this group of products without extending this paper inordinately. Handles, legs, and life forms are varied and interesting; they are not so boldly treated, however, as in some of the other groups. This is a result perhaps of the unusual degree of polish given to all parts of the surface preparatory to the application of designs in color, the processes tending to subdue and simplify the salient features.