According to biological research by Raúl Valadez, Alicia Blanco and Bernardo Rodríguez, there were four breeds of dog in ancient Mexico. The most common was medium-sized, with a slender body, elongated head and fur; another similar to this but with a short face, identified in the Mayan region; still another similar to the first one, but with short legs, associated with western and central Mesoamerica; and the fourth breed is the Xoloitzcuintle in two varieties, one with hair and the other hairless.
In this work it is possible to recognize the race as xoloitzcuitle. Its masterful naturalistic modeling, with emphasis on anatomical detail, is an example of the sculptural art produced in the western region of Mesoamerica by the Shaft Tomb Culture. This is an ancient society that inhabited a vast and diverse territory from at least 300 BC to 600 AD, encoming southern Sinaloa and Zacatecas, Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima, and neighboring parts of Michoacán.
The different communities that made up the culture of the shaft tombs expressed elements of their identity in zonal stylistic modalities of ceramic art in the form of sculptures and vessels. The dogs we dwell on have their origin in the artistic school of the Comala Valley, in Colima. Some of its attributes are the modeling of hollow volumes with tubular protrusions like the mouths of containers, the surface with engobes that tend to appear monochrome and the burnishing or fine polishing with a compact object that generates brilliance.
The reddish color indicates that its surface was covered with an engobe containing hematite or iron oxide, and after being burnished it was fired in a ventilated kiln, which in the end produced the distinctive vermilion red of Comala pottery. As has been said, it is a Xoloitzcuintle; the linear incisions that run across the face and the reliefs of the torso depict an animal without fur and with wrinkled skin.
It looks slim and long-legged; its hind legs are flexed and its tail is lowered to one side. xoloitzcuintle is another Nahuatl term recorded in the Florentine Codex, which is usually translated as “strange dog” or “wrinkled dog.” It is composed of the words xolo or xólotl and itzcuintli. Some meanings of xolo or xólotl are monstrous, in the sense of abnormal or strange. Some meanings are servant, to sit in a crouched position, to fold and wrinkle; while itzcuintli is a generic term for dog and could allude to its sharp teeth in relation to itztli, which is obsidian or obsidian knife.
The sculpture also incorporates a characteristic feature of the Comal style into its composition: at the top of the head is a discreet cylindrical spout with a wide, straight, diverging fringe. Another element to mention are the black spots with irregular outlines distributed over the surface of the xoloitzcuintle. They are manganese deposits and show that the work was buried, most probably as part of a burial offering. This mineral is found in the soil and circumstantially adhered to the piece, as not all ceramic pieces present it, even when they have been deposited in subterranean contexts.
In the art scene of ancient Mexico, the shaft tomb culture offers a numerous and magnificent representation of dogs, in correlation with their religious, mythical and ritual values, among others.
According to biological research by Raúl Valadez, Alicia Blanco and Bernardo Rodríguez, there were four breeds of dog in ancient Mexico. The most common was medium-sized, with a slender body, elongated head and fur; another similar to this but with a short face, identified in the Mayan region; still another similar to the first one, but with short legs, associated with western and central Mesoamerica; and the fourth breed is the Xoloitzcuintle in two varieties, one with hair and the other hairless.
