Pre-Columbian Maya Jaguar Burial urn lid fragment

Object Type: Burial urn lid fragment (jaguar head)
Culture: Maya
Region/Site: Quiché, Guatemala
Period: Late Classic
Date: c. 600–900 CE
Material: Terracotta with traces of pigment
Dimensions: 6 3/8" x 4 5/8"

Description:
This terracotta fragment represents the head of a jaguar, once part of the lid of a Maya burial urn. The head is hand-modeled with rounded proportions and a coarse, weathered surface. Distinct features include large rounded ears projecting outward, recessed circular eyes retaining traces of red pigment, and a broad snout with incised nostrils. The mouth is slightly open, showing modeled teeth and pronounced cheek ridges. The reddish-brown clay preserves faint remnants of red and white paint, indicating that the urn was originally polychrome. (See last image of a full-size urn, and how this piece would of been part of the lid.)

Cultural Context:
Burial urns were widely employed in Maya mortuary practices to house cremated remains and ritual offerings. Lids were often adorned with figures of deities, ancestors, or powerful animals. The jaguar was a central symbol in Maya belief, associated with rulership, night, and the underworld, as well as shamanic transformation. In the highlands of Quiché, jaguar imagery on funerary containers reflected the community’s desire to connect the deceased with supernatural forces and cycles of rebirth.

Significance:
Though fragmentary, this piece illustrates the strong symbolic and ritual importance of jaguar iconography in highland Maya funerary traditions and highlights the region’s contribution to Classic Maya ceramic artistry.

Provenance:

Ex, David Fincher, TX, Ex, Bob Awe Texas, collected prior to 1970.