Figure of a Warrior (after 1325 (thermoluminescence date of casting core, 1345–1575)): Art, History and Details

Figure of a Warrior (after 1325 (thermoluminescence date of casting core, 1345–1575)) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The elite status of this warrior, who holds a dartthrower, darts, and a shield, is revealed by the gold from which he is made as well as his jewelry and sandals. Military accomplishment was prized by the Aztecs, whose imperial expansion was fueled by ambition as well as their belief that they were chosen to uphold cosmic order through war. The purpose of the chest cavity is unclear; the figurine may have been worn as a pendant.

Object facts

• Title: Figure of a Warrior
• Date: after 1325 (thermoluminescence date of casting core, 1345–1575)
• Culture: Central Mexico, Tetzcoco?, Aztec, Post-Classic Period
• Type: Metalwork
• Technique: gold-silver-copper alloy (cast)
• Dimensions: Overall: 11.2 x 6.1 cm (4 7/16 x 2 3/8 in.)
• Collection: AA - Mesoamerica
• Department: Art of the Americas
• Accession number: 1984.37

A detail from the museum

The calendar glyphs on the figure's back read "2 Rabbit, 3 Water."

Collection credit

Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• García Granados, Rafael. Estudio comparativo de los signos cronográficos e slos códices prehispánicos de Méjico. Actas De La Primera Sesion Celebr. En México En 1939, Del 27 Congreso Internac. De Americanistas. México: Talleres gráf. de la nación, 1942.
• Dempsey, James H. "The Annual Report for 1984." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 72, no. 4 (1985)
• Cleveland Museum of Art. Interpretations: Sixty-Five Works from the Cleveland Museum of Art. 1991.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.