Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Incised flake with deity image
Not on view
Imported from sources in the Guatemalan Highlands, obsidian—a volcanic glass—was employed for making sharp cutting tools and weapons. This flake shows the head of K’awiil with his characteristic traits: a large eye with a spiral pupil, a serpentine snout, an elongated head with a mirror inset in the forehead, and a flaming torch projecting from the mirror. Vegetation grows behind his head, denoting his association with fertility and abundance.
Lasca grabada con imagen de deidad
Ofrenda 131, Templo II, Tikal, Guatemala
ca. 700 d. C.
Obsidiana
La obsidiana –vidrio volcánico que los mayas importaban del altiplano guatemalteco– se empleaba para fabricar herramientas y armas muy filosas. Esta lasca muestra la cabeza de K’awiil con sus rasgos distintivos: ojos con pupilas en espiral, hocico de serpiente y cabeza alargada con un espejo en la frente, del cual surge una antorcha encendida. La vegetación que brota tras él indica su relación con la fertilidad y la abundancia.
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
