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@patrickkapty.bsky.social Oct 7, 2026, 6:45 PM

Storm God Mosaic Mask
jade, shell, wooden base
c. 200-600 CE
Maya culture
Guatemala

#handmade #precolumbian #carved #jade #shell #wood #mosaic #mask #stormgod #art #ancientart #Maya #culture #Guatemala #prehispanic #mesoamerica #MayanArt #precolumbianjade #burial #afterlife #religion #belief #elite

Storm God Mosaic Mask
Maya. Guatemala. c. AD 200-600.
jadeite and shell tesserae set over a wooden core with resin.
Collection: The Al Thani Collection.
Now on display at the Hôtel de la
Marine, Paris.
Look closely at the image: spiral eyes, broad nose, round earspools and a parted mouth lined with orange shell. That orange is spondylus, a Pacific spiny oyster.
Conservators studying a closely related jade mosaic mask from a royal tomb at Chochkitam, Guatemala, noted that spondylus turns warm and flesh-like when backlit, making the face seem to come alive. That mask lay on a king's chest and has been read as a manifestation of the storm god.

@patrickkapty.bsky.social Sep 23, 2026, 1:59 PM

Skull Bead
carved jade
c. 1200-1520 CE
Aztec (Mexica) culture
Mexico

#handmade #carved #jade #human #skull #bead #Aztec #Mexica #culture #Mexico #religion #belief #FiveSuns #regeneration #restore #cosmicbalance #precolumbianjade #prehispanic #ancientart #art #jewelry #ancientjewelry #wearableart

@loscastillotaxco.bsky.social Sep 20, 2026, 4:05 PM

A huge one of a kind Chato Castillo sterling silver and carved jade Olmec Warrior design pin brooch c. 1940s - measures 4-3/8" tall by 3-1/8" wide!

Available...

www.rubylane.com/item/1879775...

#handmade #OlmecWarrior #precolumbianjade #ChatoCastilloTaxco #mexicansilver #wearableart #brooch #pin

A one of a kind vintage 1940s handmade sterling silver and carved pre-Columbian jade Olmec Warrior design brooch by Chato Castillo of Los Castillo from early in his career in Taxco. Entirely handmade hammered from behind, the sterling silver has been shaped using the repoussage technique to form the dimensional design, then hand etched at front, and with applied silver balls and a dangling fringe at the bottom. No doubt Chato, who was a long time collector of pre-Columbian artifacts like his brother Antonio, and his former employer, William Spratling, created this brooch to house this amazing ancient artifact in hand-carved jade object. Most likely originally worn by a pre-Columbian ball player as a badge of honor or rank. (See my last photo for a similar ceremonial 'hacha' from Veracruz circa 600 CE.) A beautiful pale yellow-green colored jade with slight color variations, and what the Chinese call 黃玉 (Huángyù), meaning "yellow jade". A very rare design that I haven't seen before or since, and according to the classic, "Mexican Jewelry" (1963) by Mary Davis and Greta Pack, speaking about Chato and his jewelry, "...In the few jewelry pieces that he makes...his pieces are all one of a kind..." (p.195). Measures 4-3/8" tall by 3-1/8" wide at front, and weighs a substantial 81.2 grams or nearly three ounces total weight! Marked at back as shown, "Sterling Chato Mexico" and design number "2", which makes this one of his earliest numbered designs. Tested and guaranteed to be as described. Could be easily converted to be worn as a pendant with a slip-on pendant converter that slips over the pin stem. Excellent vintage condition.

@patrickkapty.bsky.social Sep 16, 2026, 4:13 PM

Were-Jaguar Mask
carved greenstone (serpentine or jade)
c. 900-600 BCE
Olmec culture
Mexico

#handmade #carved #greenstone #jade #serpentine #olmec #culture #werejaguar #mask #transformation #shaman #ritual #religion #fertility #maize #precolumbian #prehispanic #precolumbianjade #ancientart #art

This image shows an ancient Olmec greenstone were-jaguar mask, originating from Mesoamerica (approx. 900–600 BCE).
Features the characteristic downturned trapezoidal mouth, almond-shaped eyes, and a cleft head representing the supernatural transformation between human and jaguar.
Carved from dense green stone (such as jadeite or serpentine), which held deep religious significance associated with maize, water, and life-generating fertility.
Created by the Olmec civilization—often termed the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica—such masks were likely utilized in elite shamanic rituals or as sacred votive offerings.

@patrickkapty.bsky.social Sep 7, 2026, 3:47 PM

Ixiim Maize God Vessel
jade mosaic on wood
c. 800 CE
Maya culture
Tikal, Guatemala

#handmade #carved #jadeite #jade #mosaic #wood #core
#Ixiim #godofMaize #ceremonial #vessel #Tikal #king #Yik'inChanK'awiil #Maya #culture #precolumbian #precolumbianjade #art #ancientart #mayanjade #burial #offering

Pictured is an 8th-century Maya anthropomorphic jade mosaic vessel unearthed from Burial 196 in the ancient city of Tikal, Guatemala.
The artifact is built over a wooden core.
Artisans attached thin jadeite plates using tiny jade pins to create a seamless mosaic surface.
The detailed face and elaborate headdress represent the Maya Maize God (Ixiim). This deity symbolizes agricultural renewal, rebirth, and the eternal cycle of life.
This luxury object dates to the Late Classic period. It is linked to the reign of the powerful Tikal king Yik'in Chan K'awiil.
You can view similar royal collections at the Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología in Guatemala City.