The patojo is a peculiar ceramic vessel in the shape of a foot or shoe; it is a type of jug or pitcher, as it has a handle, with a part of the body extending to one side. It can have one or two handles, holders and, as in this case, sculptural features that accentuate its figurative appearance; also, the surface may display two-dimensional decoration.
Numerous Mesoamerican cultures include the patojo in their pottery repertoires, and it is possible to assume that its uses are varied. In a domestic environment they are found in the kitchen: it allows for cooking two dishes in a single fire, for this, the extended portion of the patojo can be placed under a comal and over the lit coal, and because the opening remains outside of the fire, the person cooking can stir the contents and take the container by the handle, which remains cooler. In some archaeological contexts, patojos have been found containing human remains, in a funerary urn fashion; patojos often show no traces of fire, which, along with ornamental elements, indicate that its functions go beyond the practical.
As regards this one, Jacqueline Larralde de Saenz has mentioned that it comes from the Apatzingan, Michoacan area, situated in the region known as Tierra Caliente. It is somehow reminiscent of the stylistic types of pieces called Coahuayana, typical of shaft tomb culture and located on the border of Colima and Michoacan. It should be noted that in the West Mesoamerican art there are abundant ceramic sculptures with features from effigy containers and vessels, so it is highly likely that the piece was produced in this region.
It shows a human figure, perhaps a stout woman who, even though she does not have bulging breasts, it could be interpreted that her torso is bare and wears a skirt marked with a kind of embossed belt, which covers her outstretched front legs; elongated elements at the end of the horizontal section seem to have a dual appearance: a fringed skirt or six fingers of a strange foot; another female attribute is the outstretched arms showing her palms. The face is very striking: the eyes and mouth have a form similar to that of a "coffee bean"; the eyes and the short and aquiline nose are at the same level. It does not exhibit any traces of exposure to fire; however, it surely served as a container.
The patojo is a peculiar ceramic vessel in the shape of a foot or shoe; it is a type of jug or pitcher, as it has a handle, with a part of the body extending to one side. It can have one or two handles, holders and, as in this case, sculptural features that accentuate its figurative appearance; also, the surface may display two-dimensional decoration.
