ART OF THE AMERICAS

ART OF THE AMERICAS - The artifacts depicted in this blog post come from an exhibit titled Art of the Americas; at a fine art museum in San Francisco, the de Young. As I understand it, all these pieces pre-date the brutal invasions by Spanish conquistadores. The exhibit has a focus on religious and funerary aspects. The Maize God is one of my favorites, at the top of the row of images. Since it’s under glass at the museum, that pic is the hardest one to make out, on the blog page. Composed of limestone and pigment, dated to approximately AD 800. The deity is associated with creation myths, fertility, birth and abundance. The other pieces are figurines, pottery and obsidian ceremonial knives.