Much of Mayan art was dedicated to the glorification of their great kings, priests and gods. In the artistic expression of the Myriad aspects of this complex culture, the Mayan craftsmen excelled in the ability to fit design, form and function in such a way as to employ each component to its maximum, while at the same time achieving an integrated aesthetic unity. This ceramic effigy bowl is a stunning example of this artistry, its rounded form supporting the projected head of a figure, possibly the old Mayan God N or Pauahtun. The deity's characteristically aged face grins at the world through a wide, toothless mouth, while large eyes peer out above puffy cheeks. His thin arms rest against the bowl's surface, bent in a typical ceremonial pose. At the same time, small protrusions at the base of the bowl give the appearance of the God's legs, imaginatively serving as a support for the vessel. The old Pauahtun, one of the Mayan gods of the underworld, was also a God of writing and of art. Clearly, his manifestation in this extraordinary vessel attests quite grandly to his role as a God of the arts, for its aesthetic beauty is ageless in its ability to please the senses.