Pre-Columbian, Ecuador, La Tolita (sometimes Tumaco), ca. 350 BCE to 350 CE. A charming hollow-molded pottery figure of a mother and child. Standing upon sturdy legs and broad feet, the ancient woman displays a thick body with sloped shoulders and a sizable head. Her slender arms are bent at the elbows in order to hold a petite infant in her lap, who sucks at her teat. Topped with a bulbous headdress, the lovely woman wears a knee-length skirt, several bangles, a multi-layered collar necklace with a rectangular pendant, and a pair of large, circular earspools. She glares forwards from heavy-lidded, almond-shaped eyes above a prominent nose, straight mouth, and jutting chin. The child rests safely in her embrace, laying horizontally in profile and placing one arm upon the breast of its mother. Size: 4.25" W x 8.5" H (10.8 cm x 21.6 cm)

Provenance: private Washington, USA collection, acquired June 23, 2001; ex-Joel Malter collection, Van Nuys, California, USA

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#163086

Head reattached with restoration over break lines. Right side of headdress and proper right ear restored from new material. Abraded area to right shoulder, as well as chip to posterior and proper right foot. Expected nicks, scratches, and light abrasions, commensurate with age. Char marks on verso and some small areas of front. Otherwise, very nice with lovely mineral deposits throughout.