Source: WTL© photograph of a replica of an Aztec art object that he bought in Mexico in 1985.
Comments: This is a funerary urn used to burn incense. It represents Chaac or Tláloc, the god of rain. The original statue is from the late postclassic period of Aztec-dominated Yucatán (1325-1521), and the original is currently found in the MNA. Things to notice: it is brightly painted (polychrome); it is so ornate that it calls to mind the "baroque" aspects of some of pre-Columbian art; and it imposingly impressive; and it is intensely symbolic. Nevertheless, it is to be noted that Mayan, Toltec, and Aztec priests who impersonated the gods, including Chaac / Tláloc wore extremely intricate costumes that brought such artistic religious images "alive". Mesoamericans were and continue to be excellent artists, weavers, designers, sewers, and pottery crafts people.