Colima Vessel in the Form of a Dog with a Turtle Shell - PF.0919
Origin: Western Mexico
Circa: 300 BC to 300 AD
Catalogue: V4
Collection: Pre-Columbian
Style: Colima
Medium: Terracotta

In the mythology of ancient Meso-America, the gods sometimes played strange tricks with nature: men were changed into animals, odd hybrids were created, the world was turned upside-down. This fascinating turtle-dog, with his beautifully burnished shell, perhaps played a key role in the deceased's passage into the underworld. He challenges our notions of the conventional world even as he delights both the eye and the hand. - (PF.0919)