Olmec pendant

Dated: 900[BCE] -400[BCE]

Cultural Context: Olmec style. Middle Preclassic.

Origin: Mexico, Mesoamerica.

Medium: Jade

Technique: Polished, Chipped

Dimensions: Height = 7.9 cm; Width = 5.7 cm; Depth = 5.5 cm

Inventory no.: 03174

Pendant depicting an anthropomorphised bird's head. Both the volutes on the crest, which represent the plumage of certain eagles, and the hooked nose allow the representation to be identified with the god "III Olmec" or "Bird Monster", related to the sun and sky, clouds and rain and to the earth, maize and fertility; in other words, with the dual creative principle represented by the Olmecs as a Dragon or mixed being.