Ceramic Effigy Jar, Costa Rica

Crouched on its haunches with hands on knees, it looks ready to give advice nobody asked for.

This effigy jar comes from Nicoya, Costa Rica, and dates to the 12th – 16th century. It is pottery. Potters of the Greater Nicoya region generally modeled vessels as human and animal figures. Here a squatting figure forms the jar, with large round eyes, flared nostrils, pursed lips and ears set wide. Long arms bend to rest the hands on the knees, and a panel of incised woven or braided pattern runs down the chest. The surface is a dark, burnished brown. It is 6 inches wide, 8 deep and 10 high.

Sculpture and storage, with very little compromise on either.