Jalisco Seated Male Figure

George and Julianne Alderman, Baltimore

Male figures in defensive animated postures have been referred to as wrestlers as well as warriors. Clothed simply in close-fitting trunks, this figure bares only his youthful strength in his role as a guardian. His finely modeled clenched hands suggest his holding and using implements. The torqued body and turned head indicate motion as he confidently looks ahead. The reddish brown body paint and specific facial features suggest he is a related figure to lot 84. 

Cf. For similar figures, see Sotheby’s, New York, May 13, 2011, lot 146; for the type, see Michael Kan, Clement Meighan, H.B. Nicholson, Sculpture of Ancient West Mexico, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, Los Angeles, 1970 (reprinted 1989), p. 114, fig. 78.