Head
Not on view
This work from Puerto Rico may be what is known as a guaíza, a category of objects in stone, wood, or shell that feature rounded heads and zemí faces. Zemí (or cemí) is a term used by Taíno peoples, the diverse societies that inhabited the Antilles archipelago before European contact, that linguistically relates to a quality akin to sweetness. Zemí refers not to an object or image but to an immaterial, spiritual, and vital force pertaining to deities and ancestors. There are several known zemí identities recorded by the Spanish, some of which have been linked to archaeological images.
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