Model of a facade with a character at the door

The discovery of a language to schematically represent the forms that the Mezcala tradition created is one of the most valuable contributions of Mesoamerican art. We believe we must understand the Mezcala phenomenon as a happy conjunction of two factors: on the one side, a very clear symbolic intention that requires a certain level of abstraction, and on the other, a material and technique that implied the preferably straight-lined and geometric execution of the different forms.

Among the most original and notable works are the representations of architecture, above all, flat frontal views. Some vertical cuts indicate the presence of columns, and some sgraffito lines mark the base, , stairs and several details of the roof. This is what happens with the representations of the human figure in this tradition. The efficiency with which a meager number of traces convincingly describes a very complex object is surprising.

The temple represented in this piece has a man at the door. The outline of the human figure is formidable, even more schematic than the human figures carved in an isolated manner in the Mezcala tradition: the silhouette and very few carved lines are enough to create the human figure.

The forms emerging in the upper part of the temples would have to be analyzed more calmly as a whole. In some cases, such as this one, it seems that the temple has a crest, and there are also temples with a satin frieze. However, in this and other architectonic Mezcala representations, it is frequent for the presence of a human head to be suggested on the upper part, which some locals call "the guardian".

They seem to be schematic representations of temples, and it is probable that they presided over the Mezcala grave goods. They would have been associated with the representations of the "world" that accompanied the deceased in miniature.