Probably it would not be incorrect to say that the cultures of Western Mesoamerica, characterized by the production of shaft tombs, stand out as those that had the most creative ceramists of ancient Mexico. It is unlikely that we would find the same variety of anthropomorphic clay sculptures in any other region. Each small area had its own style; the diversity of sizes, strategies of abstraction, postures and gestures is enormous. The expressions of the personages change so much, as do the color and finish of the pieces.
One feature of the ceramic art of the shaft tombs is the variety; but within that plurality of works there is also a remarkable homogeneity: it is always the human figure, sometimes at rest and in action, with more or less natural poses, resting, sitting, gesturing. It has rightly been said that this burial art embodies the paradox of its enormous vitality.
An issue pending further studies is that of the specific role of anthropomorphic figures that were placed in the Mesoamerican tombs. It is a practice that began in the Preclassic, had its heyday in the Classic (in the West, in the Middle Balsas River basin and in Oaxaca), and did not end until the days of the Conquest.
The most repeated hypothesis describes these figures as "companions"; they would be people, possibly relatives of the deceased, who would contribute to creating a familiar scenario and "vital" for that individual who had died and whose soul, however, remained alive, according to the Mesoamerican belief, and somewhat wandering for at least four years until ultimately they came to the abode of the dead.
These pieces in particular are notable for their eloquence and expressiveness; the two are in a squatting position, with their hands on the floor. The use of that little basket hanging on the back could be related to planting or else with the presentation of an offering, if we interpret it to mean bags of copal from other regions. The hunchbacks would probably be servants or slaves of a lord's court, however modest it was.
Probably it would not be incorrect to say that the cultures of Western Mesoamerica, characterized by the production of shaft tombs, stand out as those that had the most creative ceramists of ancient Mexico. It is unlikely that we would find the same variety of anthropomorphic clay sculptures in any other region. Each small area had its own style; the diversity of sizes, strategies of abstraction, postures and gestures is enormous. The expressions of the personages change so much, as do the color and finish of the pieces.
