Turquoise mosaics from Mexico / Colin McEwan ... [and others] ; with contributions by Adrián Velázquez ... [and others].

Format:

Book

Contributor:

McEwan, Colin.

British Museum

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Indian art--Mexico.

Indian art.

Mosaics.

Turquoise.

Mexico.

Indian masks--Mexico.

Indian masks.

Indians of Mexico--Antiquities.

Indians of Mexico.

Turquoise--Mexico.

Mosaics--Mexico.

Mexico--Antiquities.

Antiquities.

Physical Description:

96 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), color map ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Durham [N.C.] : Duke University Press, 2006.

Summary:

The nine turquoise mosaics from Mexico are among the most striking objects in the collections of the British Museum. They include masks, a shield, a knife, and a helmet, all originating from the Mixtec and Aztec civilizations first encountered by Europeans during the Spanish conquest in the early sixteenth century.

Recent scientific investigations undertaken at the British Museum have dramatically advanced knowledge of the mosaics by characterizing, for the first time, the variety of natural materials that were used to create them. Research has also brought to light the exceptional skills employed by the makers of the mosaics. In this lavishly illustrated book, specialists from the British Museum explore the role of turquoise mosaics in ritual by drawing on contemporary accounts and early pictorial books or codices that place these compelling objects in their historical context. Turquoise Mosaics from Mexico offers a succinct and informative overview of the production, utilization, and eventual fate of these beautiful and mysterious objects.

Contents:

Director's Foreword 6

Ancient Mexico 8

Mosaics in the British Museum 11

Antecedents in serpentine and jade 14

The significance of materials 19

2 Mosaics under the Microscope 24

Microscopy and analysis: the science behind the art 24

Raw materials: selection and procurement 27

Construction of the mosaics 38

3 The Turquoise Mosaics in the British Museum Collections 42

The masks 42

The helmet 53

The double-headed serpent 54

The shield 59

The mosaic on a human skull 66

The knife 71

The jaguar 78

The animal head 83.

Notes:

Recent scientific investigation of nine turquoise mosaics displayed in the Mexican Gallery at the British Museum.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 91-93) and index.

ISBN:

9780822339151

9780822339243

OCLC:

65521497

Publisher Number:

9780822339151

9780822339243