An anthropomorphic figure or idol, carved from pale grey stone. The figure is characteristically abstract and minimalistic. The neckline, arms, and legs are all delineated through use of the meticulous string-cutting technique, and the entire figure has a semi-smooth texture.
 
Pre-Columbian Mexico, Guerrero, Mezcala culture: Circa 300-100 BC.
 
Height 12.3 cms (4.85 ins)
Condition: Surface on the lower side and rear a little pitted, otherwise, complete.
 
Provenance: Collection of George and Julianne Alderman, Baltimore, MD USA. Acquired mid 1960's to mid-1990's.
 
Literature: According to Gay/Pratt, Mezcala, NY 1992, this very impressive and, as is usually the case with Mezcala, highly abstract figure belongs to type group M 10. Carlo Gay and Frances Pratt, Mezcala, Ancient Stone Sculpture from Guerrero, Mexico, 1992, pls. 246-248
 
From the mountainous region of Guerrero in modern-day Mexico, the Mezcala culture is famous for its prolific production of stone sculpture, which includes human figures, animal effigies and architectural models, dating from 300-100 BC. Little is known about this ancient civilisation, other than that it chose to bury its dead with these abstract, esoteric stone carvings, and that it was the only one of the Mesoamerican civilizations to have been so focused on architecture.