Pre-Columbian Antiquities from Central America and the Caribbean

Pre-Columbian artifacts of the Caribbean area mostly come from the Greater Antilles islands of Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic). The principal people to inhabit this area were the Arawak, who were known as the Taíno. The most characteristic objects are made of bone, wood, and stone, and include spatulas for inducing vomiting for religious purification; dujos, or carved wooden stools for chiefs or priests; and zemi, or triangular stones carved with human or animal features representing major natural spirits and deities. Pottery included incised pots with geometric designs and effigy vessels in human shapes.

Costa Rican Zoomorphic Bowl
Costa Rican Zoomorphic Bowl

Unusual form! Ancient Pre-Columbian Bowl from Costa Rica, ca. 1000 – 1500 AD. Polychrome pottery with stylized human/zoomorphic features on front and sides.

$695.00
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Pre-Columbian Gold Turtle - Chiriqui-Diquis
Pre-Columbian Gold Turtle - Chiriqui-Diquis

Ancient gold turtle from the Chiriqui-Diquis region of Costa Rica, ca. 800 to 1200 A.D. With unusual split tail, legs ceremonially "killed" in ancient times.

$4,995.00
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Teotihuacan Eccentric Flint Human Figure
Teotihuacan Eccentric Flint Human Figure

Unusual form! Teotihuacan Eccentric "flint" in the form of a human figure, ca. 400 - 600 A.D. Knapped greenish-black obsidian (volcanic glass).

$1,975.00
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Rare Mayan Peten Square Vase - Early!
Rare Mayan Peten Square Vase - Early!

From the Mayan Territories, ca. 300 A.D., Peten - Guatemala. Square pottery vessel covered with rows of glyphs in a metallic black glaze with original cinnabar...

$9,250.00
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Maya Deity Rattle
Maya Deity Rattle

Ancient Pre-Columbian Rattle, west Mexico, Mayan, ca. 550 - 850 A.D. Molded pottery rattle depicting a standing figure/shaman with one hand hanging down to his side;

$1,195.00
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Costa Rican Tripod Vessel, Rattle Legs
Costa Rican Tripod Vessel, Rattle Legs

Ancient Pre-Columbian Tripod Vessel from Costa Rica, ca. 1000-1400 A.D. Polychrome pottery rattle leg tripod bowl with applied anthropomorphic head with snake-like arm apendages.

$395.00
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Did you know?

Taíno culture was the most highly developed in the Caribbean when Columbus reached Hispaniola in 1492. Islands throughout the Greater Antilles were dotted with Taíno communities nestled in valleys and along the rivers and coastlines, some of which were inhabited by thousands of people.