Oxtotitlán
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Oxtotitlán is the name of a natural rock shelter and archaeological site in the Mexican state of Guerrero that contains murals linked to the Olmec motifs and iconography. Along with the nearby Juxtlahuaca cave, the Oxtotitlán rock paintings represent the "earliest sophisticated painted art known in Mesoamerica".[1] Unlike Juxtlahuaca, however, the Oxtotitlán paintings are not deep in a cave system but rather occupy two shallow grottos on a cliff face.
The paintings have been variously dated to perhaps 900 BCE[2] or 800 to 500 BCE.[3] It is not known what group or society painted them. It is also not known how Olmec-influenced art came to be painted hundreds of kilometres (or miles) from the Olmec heartland, although caves are prominent on many Olmec-style monuments, including La Venta Altars 4 and 5.
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[edit] Distribution
The paintings are distributed in three areas with a separate type of painting assigned to each area. The north grotto paintings are smaller, were created using black pigment, and feature animals, humans, and fantastic creatures. The south grotto paintings, by contrast, are in red and generally feature geometric designs. Between the north and south grottos are two large polychrome murals.
[edit] Description
Mural 1[4] is situated above the mouth to the south grotto, and portrays what is most likely a ruler seated upon a throne similar to La Venta's Altar 4 or 5. The eyes of a primal cave monster, showing Olmec iconic crossed-bars, can be seen on the top edge of the throne (note that the ruler is also wearing a crossed-bars pectoral, perhaps linking him directly with the monster).
The ruler, painted in vibrant reds, greens, and browns, is wearing a bird mask, generally identified as that of an owl,[5] as well as a green-feathered costume. Seated on the throne, his left leg is tucked underneath him while the right dangles down, similar to a pose found on the fragmentary Laguna de los Cerros Monument 9.
At 3 metres by 2 metres, Mural 2 is even larger than Mural 1 but this exposed painting has been largely worn away over the intervening millennia and is now almost impossible to recognize.[6] It seems to picture a human in jaguar clothing or otherwise associated with a jaguar.
Also of particular note is the north grotto's "most striking creation",[7] Painting 1-D, which features an ithyphallic man standing behind what appears to be a rearing jaguar. The man is painted in black outline, with a headress. His exaggerated genitals that point to the jaguar have led to speculation that this is a scene of a man copulating with a jaguar.[8]
[edit] Preservation and visitation
In the 30 years following its re-discovery, the site was the object of graffiti and poor maintenance. This was addressed in the 2002 by the restoration work of Sandra Cruz, under the auspices of the National Coordination of Conservation of the Cultural Patrimony, INAH-Churubusco.
Although the paintings can still be viewed, visitors must first register with the local caretakers in the nearby village of Acatlán.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Coe, M.D. (2002); Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs London: Thames and Hudson.
- Diehl, Richard A. (2004) The Olmecs: America's First Civilization, Thames & Hudson, London.
- Grove, David C. (2000) "Caves of Guerrero (Guerrero, Mexico)", in Archaeology of Ancient Mexico & Central America: an Encyclopedia, ed. Evans, Susan; Thames and Hudson, London.
- Grove, David (2007) "The Middle Preclassic Period Paintings of Oxtotitlan, Guerrero", FAMSI Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies Inc., accessed April 2007.
- Kubler, George (1990) The Art and Architecture of Ancient America, Yale University Press.
[edit] External links
