Ancient American Artifact Lecture
NCMA curator Ángel González examines the stone sculpture of a warrior, a significant artifact on loan from the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City currently displayed in the Ancient American Gallery, before its return to Mexico. His talk focuses on the rise of imperial sculptural expressions in the ancient city of Tenochtitlan (the Aztec capital).
He first explores the city’s remarkable burst of creativity in a span of less than 100 years and its profound cultural importance, tracing a journey from humble beginnings to global recognition with iconic works like the calendar stone, or sun stone. Then he closely examines the symbolic meaning embedded in the warrior sculpture.
Image: Toltec, Toltec Warrior, 1486–1521, volcanic rock, H. 47 × W. 16 1/2 × D. 14 1/2 in., Museo Nacional de Antropología (10-81768)