Man with expressive face with his hands at his waist

We well recognize the Mezcala tradition as an artistic manifestation that occurred specifically in small stone carvings and was used in the preparation of grave goods. The majority of Mezcala pieces are schematic human figures, perhaps eighty percent or more. There are also animals, temples, scepters and some other objects.

Human figures, which must have represented the deceased and their kin, perhaps also their ancestors, always obey the same design: they are frontal, schematic, symmetric, rather flat representations with arms folded at right angles on the abdomen, and occasionally folded in the form of a cross. The level of abstraction of some of these representations is so notable that the whole body seems to be depicted with just a few straight lines. Occasionally a certain curve is seen in the legs, especially due to the effect of the cord that serves as a saw to make a cut and separate both.

This  piece represents an offshoot of the tradition. As with piece number  960,  it has a certain curve or roundness in the arms, which is not unusual in other pieces. But above all what calls ones attention is the presence of volumes that denote a more naturalist treatment of the face affording it a certain expression. 

What is notable is the distancing from the more schematic, almost geometric and highly synthetic forms of other figures of the tradition. This occurs to the same extent that a certain naturalism and semblance of facial expression is achieved.

One detail of the technique applied to this piece, together with figures 957 and 963, is the drilling of a hole between the arms and the trunk. A drill had to be used to create such a hole, and subsequently a long instrument that may have been a cord or polishing stone in the form of a file.