Flute with cavity in the shape of a capsule or globule that has one or more holes to change the pitch of the sound; unlike tubular flutes, it is not possible to play harmonic sounds with globular flutes. The flute cavity depicts a warrior dressed in padded armor. On his forehand he wears blinders typical of those worn by the warriors of the Central Highlands, and he wears earrings from which long feathers hang. The mouthpiece is located at the back and the hole that allows change of pitch range is on the base of the effigy.
Gonzalo Sanchez
The origin of this piece is unknown, although looking at the style and design, it could come from Northern Yucatan, specifically from the city of Oxkintok or Xculoc, where there are characters carved in stone that are dressed in the same attire. Likewise, there are similar whistles that come from other regions of Tabasco, like Tortuguero or Palenque, but Jaina Island, located in the Mexican state of Campeche, is one of the places were most figurines of this type were made.
This is a clay whistle that depicts a plump boy with his body covered in a cotton doublet and over the top a simple skirt tied at the waist. There is a breastplate on the chest with a decoration in the middle in the shape of a foot. The cotton doublet is often identified as warrior clothing and it is seen on characters in the seventeenth century in Mayan cities in Northern Yucatan, such as Oxkintok and Xcluloc, which acted as atlanteans at certain times (drawing 1) but it is a sculpture from the city of Oxkintok that shares real similarities with this figurine. The man carved in one of the columns of the Ch’ich Palace from the Ah Canul Group from Oxkintok is practically identical to this figurine, which is also relatively obese and dressed in a cotton doublet very similar to the one our piece has, also wearing a breastplate in the shape of a hand. (Drawings 2 and 3)
The similarities between these two characters are not only limited to the clothing, but also to the faces and the headdresses which are also very alike. Both characters have less stylized appearance to the traditional Jaina style figurines seen to date, which have longer faces due to the exaggerated cephalic modeling. The man from Oxkintok and the modeled personage have broader faces and cheeks, and protruding closed eyes with large eyelids, giving the observer a feeling of great serenity. In the case of the clay figurine, we can see some inverted triangular scarifying below the closed eyes.
Both headdresses are also very similar: one decorated band at the front, beaded in the case of the figurine, and decorated with geometric and spiral designs in the case of the sculpture. They also have the same type of adornment or headdress of feathers raised from the back part of the head. The adornments on the ankles and top of the feet are also very similar: rosettes in the Oxkintok figure and concentric circles in the case of the figurine from the Amparo Museum.
Other whistles have already been mentioned, which may have formed part of a burial offering as in Northern Yucatan the tradition is still very active when making whistles for the Day of the Dead. In the town of Maxcanu, located a few kilometers from the old Mayan city of Oxkintok, the tradition of making whistles for the Day of the Dead is still kept very much alive, which is why we wonder whether this clay figurine is not a depiction of the same warrior from Oxkintok, and that it was made to accompany him into the afterlife as part of their burial offering.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
POLLOCK, Harry. 1980, The Puuc: an Architectural Survey of the Hill Country of Yucatan and Northern Campeche, Mexico. Memoirs of the Peabody Museum, 19, Harvard University, Cambridge.
Ana Garcia Barrios
