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Pair of Earflares
Not on view
Huastec artists carved fine regalia from sea-snail shells. Geometric motifs as well as intricate ceremonial and mythological scenes involving one or more human figures were usually incised or drilled on the shell’s interior. Some of the figures are shown wearing these distinctive pendants around their necks. Undulating zoomorphic beings, possibly feathered serpents representing the entrance to the underworld, are a recurring motif in the objects’ lower registers.
Los artistas huastecas elaboraron indumentarias finamente talladas a partir de la sección longitudinal de las conchas de caracoles marinos. Los motivos geométricos o las escenas ceremoniales y mitológicas complejas que involucraban a una o más figuras humanas eran generalmente incisiones o perforaciones hechas desde el interior del caracol; ciertas figuras llevan puestos estos pendientes distintivos en sus cuellos. Los seres zoomorfos ondulados, posiblemente serpientes emplumadas que significan la entrada al inframundo, son un motivo recurrente en los registros inferiores de las conchas.
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