Skip to Content
Closed today, next open Thursday. Closed today, next open Thursday.

  • Mon 11–5
  • Tue–Wed Closed
  • Thu 11–8
  • Fri–Sun 11–5
  • The first hour of every day, 10–11 a.m., is reserved for member-only viewing.

Jar with Two Plumed or Horned Serpents with Birds and P-shaped Motifs

A work made of ceramic and pigment.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

Image actions

  • A work made of ceramic and pigment.

Date:

1280–1450

Artist:

Casas Grandes, Ramos Polychrome
New Mexico, United States, or Chihuahua, Mexico

About this artwork

Zigzagging around the surface of this jar are two abstract serpents with plumes or horns emerging from their red heads, gaping mouths, and bodies filled with checkerboard patterns, triangles, concentric circles, and fine-line hatchings. Feathered or horned serpents were supernatural beings combining the attributes of snakes and birds. Serpents, able to move between the surface and interior of the earth, and birds that fly into the air were agents of communication between the human world, the tiers of the cosmos, and the sacred forces seen and experienced in the natural landscape.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of the Americas

Culture

Casas Grandes

Title

Jar with Two Plumed or Horned Serpents with Birds and P-shaped Motifs

Place

New Mexico (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1280–1450

Medium

Ceramic and pigment

Dimensions

21.6 × 24.1 cm (8 1/2 × 9 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Edward and Betty Harris

Reference Number

2004.1146

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/187548/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Share

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.
Learn more

Image actions

Share

Suggested Terms