id:			138881
accession number:	1963.252
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1963.252
updated:		2019-06-03 09:43:41.053000

Mural Fragment with Elite Male and Maguey Cactus Leaves, 500-550. Central Mexico, Tlacuilapaxco apartment compound(?), Teotihuacán style, Classic Period. Fresco on wall fragment; overall: 83.2 x 116.2 cm (32 3/4 x 45 3/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1963.252

title:				Mural Fragment with Elite Male and Maguey Cactus Leaves
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			500-550
creation date earliest:		500
creation date latest:		550
current location:		233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region
creditline:			Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
copyright:			

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culture:	Central Mexico, Tlacuilapaxco apartment compound(?), Teotihuacán style, Classic Period
technique:	fresco on wall fragment
department:	Art of the Americas
collection:	AA - Mesoamerica
type:		Painting
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 83.2 x 116.2 cm (32 3/4 x 45 3/4 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

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fun fact: 


digital description: 


wall description: 
This richly dressed elite male belonged to a row of identical figures who processed along the walls of a patio in one of Teotihuacán’s wealthy apartment compounds. He offers a chant or prayer, materialized in a mouth scroll, along with a flower-filled libation that cascades from one hand. In the other hand, he carries an incense bag. The thorny spines of the maguey cactus, in front and behind, may allude to the offering of precious blood and a ritual beverage made from the cactus’s sap (pulque, a less refined form of tequila). The spines are thrust into objects that may represent bundles or plots of land.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1963.252/1963.252_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1963.252/1963.252_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1963.252/1963.252_full.tif