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Portfolio Category: Effigies

Effigy vessel

Effigy vessel
A frog effigy vessel from Taino culture. This culture had its origins in Northern south America. In the impoverished fauna of the Antilles, lacking the large and impressive reptilian predators of the Amazonian and Orinoco floodplains, like the anaconda and the black cayman, the small and humble frog comes to occupy an important iconographic place…
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Stone frog

Stone frog
The conventionized image is that of a frog with fore and hindlegs bent inwards, as if preparing to jump. In La Hispaniola the frog was associated with females and females functions. In the South American mythology, children were turned into frogs while calling toa toa what means mother, at the same time this is the…
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Taino vessel with anthropomorphic representation

Taino vessel with anthropomorphic representation
This image represents a chief. Many Taino works of art belong to the chief, the cacique. The Taino culture reached its highest development in the island of Hispaniola. It is difficult to mark the beginning of the Taino. Their society emerged as a continuation of Caribbean prehistory for several thousand years. In some cases artifacts…
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Ceramic Vessel handle with anthropomorphic representation

Ceramic Vessel handle with anthropomorphic representation
This human figure in red color can be attributed to the Ostionoide culture. We have evidence for several kinds of changes throughout the Caribbean between 600 A.D. and 1200 A.D. Saladoide settlers moved to the highland where they changed the techniques of cultivating plants and other cultural trades. Arqueologist decided to see this like an…
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Ceramic Vessel with tortoise representation

Ceramic Vessel with tortoise representation
Many Taino objects are in the shape of turtles, an important animal in Taino creation myths. The female tortoise, a feature common to other universal myths, takes on a human role and becomes the Taino Eve.
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