Green StoneTrophy Head, 100 CE - 500 CE
Stone
14
PF.3077
Further images
This Green Stone stone head with a stoic face carries an unusual ambience and weight. Although the head is depicted with simple incision lines, one cannot escape its poignant sense...
This Green Stone stone head with a stoic face carries an unusual ambience and weight. Although the head is depicted with simple incision lines, one cannot escape its poignant sense of presence, like that of a real human head. Estranged from the body, the stone head's deep-set, stoic closed eyes and mouth create an esoteric mystery. Because Costa Rica was a tribal culture, significance of its art is largely unknown. The mystery of the stone head, then, is up to the viewers to decipher. The large stone head is depicted with bold incision lines. Perhaps such beautiful and yet stern stone sculpture had a funerary ritual significance, meant to represent or portray the deceased. Or perhaps such head is a possible symbol of human sacrificial ritual, which was a common practice in the ancient Costa Rica. During this period, people took trophy heads in battles for human sacrifice because they believed that such practice was necessary to maintain the agricultural fertility. Meso-Americans believed in their humble position and their duty to offer the best for God's mercy. The agricultural prosperity depended upon human sacrifice and this stone head well indicates the people's desire for God's mercy.