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'Great Builders' (figures engaged in building a pyramid)

Printer George C. Miller American
1930
Not on view
Charlot, who played an important role in bringing Mexican prints to The Met collection, created this print in New York after spending most of the 1920s in Mexico. Its subject reflects his interest in Maya culture, which he cultivated while working as staff artist at the Carnegie Institution’s archaeological expedition to Chichén Itzá in Yucatán from 1926 to 1928. As the site was excavated, Charlot copied the bas-reliefs and murals in pen, ink, and watercolor. This imaginative composition with stylized figures working in harmony to build a pyramid broadly reflects monuments he encountered at Chichén Itzá.



Charlot, que desempeñó un papel importante en la incorporación de los grabados mexicanos a la colección del Met, creó esta estampa en Nueva York tras pasar la mayor parte de la década de 1920 en México. Su tema refleja el interés por la cultura maya que desarrolló durante su participación como artista en la expedición arqueológica de la Carnegie Institution a Chichén Itzá, en Yucatán, entre 1926 y 1928. Durante la excavación del yacimiento, Charlot copió los bajorrelieves y los murales con pluma, tinta y acuarela. Esta imaginativa composición con figuras estilizadas que trabajan en armonía en la construcción de una pirámide ilustra, en líneas generales, los monumentos que encontró en Chichén Itzá.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: 'Great Builders' (figures engaged in building a pyramid)
  • Artist: Jean Charlot (French, Paris 1898–1979 Honolulu, Hawaii)
  • Printer: George C. Miller (American, New York 1894–1965)
  • Date: 1930
  • Medium: Lithograph
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 15 3/4 × 22 5/8 in. (40 × 57.5 cm)
    Image: 14 3/16 × 18 11/16 in. (36 × 47.5 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1932
  • Object Number: 32.21.2
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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Mexican mother and child, Jean Charlot French, Colour lithograph on stone
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Mexican kitchen, Jean Charlot French, Colour lithograph on stone
Mexican kitchen
Jean Charlot
Lawrence Barrett
1948
Large Malinches (toy fiesta), Jean Charlot French, Colour lithograph on zinc
Large Malinches (toy fiesta)
Jean Charlot
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