Openwork Pendant

10th–4th century BCE

Not on view

This jade pendant is carved with an axe-like profile and thinned into a translucent plaque. A drilled hole at the top of the pendant may have been used to suspend it as part of Olmec ritual regalia. Four parallel lines run the length of the pendant, made by a combination of drilling and string-sawing. An incised cruciform design, a motif common in Olmec art, probably references the cardinal directions.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

References

Title: Openwork Pendant
Date: 10th–4th century BCE
Geography: Mexico, Mesoamerica
Culture: Olmec
Medium: Jade
Dimensions: H. 4 3/8 × W. 2 1/4 × D. 1/8 in. (11.1 × 5.7 × 0.3 cm)
Classification: Stone-Ornaments
Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Bullowa, 1989
Object Number: 1989.314.1
Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing

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