Pectoral

1350–1250 BCE
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Iridescent marine shell was collected and traded across Mesoamerica as early as the second millennium B.C. This pectoral depicts two lizards, one with an eye of hematite inlay.




Desde el segundo milenio a. C., las conchas marinas tornasoladas tan preciadas por las antiguas culturas de Mesoamérica eran recogidas e intercambiadas a través de grandes distancias. Este pectoral hallado en una tumba presenta dos lagartijas talladas en alto relieve; una de ellas lleva una hematita incrustada.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Pectoral
  • Date: 1350–1250 BCE
  • Geography: Mexico, Morelos
  • Culture: Nexpa
  • Medium: Pearl oyster shell (Pinctada mazatlanica), hematite
  • Dimensions: H. 4 × W. 5 × D. 9/16 in. (10.2 × 12.7 × 1.4 cm)
  • Classification: Shell-Ornaments
  • Credit Line: Museo Nacional de Antropología, Secretaría de Cultura-INAH, Mexico City (10-338595)
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing