273 - Pendant depicting a standing priest holding an axe and a severed head.

Pendant depicting a standing priest holding an axe and a severed head. Pierced manatee tooth or bone (Trichechus manatus). Mexico. Maya civilization. 500–950 AD. Height: 8.5 cm. Provenance: Private collection assembled in the 1970s–1980s, Brussels Passed down through the family The use of manatee teeth and bones for the creation of ceremonial objects is attested along the coasts of the Caribbean Sea as well as on the islands inhabited by the Arawak and Taino peoples. Two Caribbean manatee teeth, found at the Taliseronde site in Marie-Galante (excavated by Guy Slozinsky) and dated to the Late Ceramic period (9th–16th centuries), are on display at the Edgard Clerc Museum in Le Moule (Guadeloupe). These artifacts are accompanied by the following caption: “These two teeth were pierced, most likely to be worn as pendants. Bone fragments or remains of manatees are extremely rare in archaeological excavations and are never found in refuse pits (areas where food scraps were discarded), which seems to indicate that the Amerindians did not consume the meat of this animal. On the contrary, the fact that the only manatee remains found are exceptional artifacts belonging to the symbolic cultural sphere suggests that these animals must have held a special place in the spiritual beliefs and imagination of the Native Americans.”