Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A large and highly-burnished redware ceramic vessel with a round but stable base, wide walls, a rolling shoulder, and a flared rim. The shoulder is decorated with three pairs of diamonds as well as a slender ring around the rim and mouth created with an impressed stippling technique. This type of vessel is colloquially referred to as a "flying saucer" because of its flattened shoulder, minimalist form, and elegant presentation. The exterior is colored with a deep red slip and light orange earthen material filling each point of the stippled decorations. A handsome and uncomplicated example! Size: 6.5" W x 12.5" H (16.5 cm x 31.8 cm).

Colima, located on Mexico's southwestern coast, was during this time part of the shaft tomb culture, along with neighbors to the north in Jalisco and Nayarit. In this culture, the deceased were buried down shafts - ranging from 3 to 20 meters deep - that were dug vertically or near vertically through the volcanic tuff that makes up the geology of the region. The base of the shaft would open into one or more horizontal chambers with a low ceiling. These shafts were almost always dug beneath a dwelling, probably a family home, and seem to have been used as family mausoleums, housing the remains of many related individuals. Vessels like this one were placed in the tombs in order to hold offerings.

For an example with a similar form, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 1979.206.349: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/312571

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-private T. Misenhimer collection, Hollywood, California, USA, famous Hollywood film producer

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#132668

Repaired from multiple pieces with some restoration, resurfacing, and overpainting along break lines. Surface wear commensurate with age, small nicks and minor roughness to rim, base, and walls, and some fading to pigmentation. Nice earthen deposits throughout, and good mineral deposits along base.