This, an entire solid figurine of a nude young woman, is one of the only two Tlatilco objects from the Bliss Collection. It is a standing figure with short, outstretched arms, small breasts, and substantial legs. Typical of Tlatilco figurines, its facial features have been modeled and appliquéd, as has the headdress, either representing long hair fashioned into a coil atop the head or an adornment, such as a hank of fiber. Incisions detail her navel and the cleft of her crotch. Painted marks are common on figurines of this type; this one has red paint on the face, headdress, and shoulders, and black paint on the lower legs. The figurine was hand-modeled, with details added by filleting, punching, gouging, and incising the clay.
Bibliography
Benson, Elizabeth P. 1963 Handbook of the Robert Woods Bliss Collection of Pre-Columbian Art. Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University, Washington, D.C., p. 9, cat. 43.
Bliss, Robert Woods 1957 Pre-Columbian Art: The Robert Woods Bliss Collection. Text and Critical Analyses by S. K. Lothrop, Joy Mahler and William F. Foshag. Phaidon, New York. p. 233, cat. 1, pl. I, top left.
Bliss, Robert Woods 1959 Pre-Columbian Art: The Robert Woods Bliss Collection. 2nd ed. Text and Critical Analyses by S. K. Lothrop, Joy Mahler and William F. Foshag. Phaidon, London. p. 241, cat. 1, pl. I, top left
Acquisition History
Gift to Robert Woods Bliss by Mr. Samuel K. Lothrop, 1953.
Robert Woods Bliss Collection of Pre-Columbian Art, Washington, DC, 1953-1962.
Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Pre-Columbian Collection, Washington, DC.
