Provenance Information

Ex coll. William (1920-2002) and Carol (1921-2019) Thibadeau, Atlanta, Georgia, purchased from Enrique Vargas (Enrique Vargas Alfaro) (1915-2008), San Jose, Costa Rica, March 1969.

Exhibition Information

Pre-Columbian Art from the Collections of Paul A. Clifford and William C. Thibadeau, The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia, February 13 - April 4, 1971
Pre-Columbian Art in Southern Collections, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, Alabama, September 9 - October 28, 1979
Seeing with New Eyes: Pre-Columbian Art from the Thibadeau Collection, Emory University Museum of Art and Archaeology, March 4 - October 13, 1992
MCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, May 11, 1993 - 2001
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, September 13, 2002 - June 2012
'For I am the Black Jaguar': Shamanic Visionary Experience in Ancient American Art, Michael C. Carlos Museum, September 5, 2012 - January 5, 2013
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, February 09, 2013 - Present

Publication Information

Pre-Columbian Art from the Collection of Paul A. Clifford and William C. Thibadeau (Atlanta: High Museum of Art, 1971), cover.
Pre-Columbian Art in Southern Collections: September 9 - October 28, 1979 (Huntsville: Huntsville Museum of Art, 1979), 38, 47, number 70.
Michael C. Carlos Museum Handbook (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 1996), 80.
Rebecca Stone-Miller, Seeing With New Eyes: Highlights of the Michael C. Carlos Museum Collection of Art of the Ancient Americas (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2002), 108, figure 222.
MCCM Newsletter, September - November 2002.
Rebecca Stone-Miller, "Human-Animal Imagery, Shamanic Visions, and Ancient American Aesthetics," RES 45 (2004): 57, figure 8.
MCCM Newsletter, September - November 2009.
Michael C. Carlos Museum: Highlights of the Collections (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2011), 73.
Maxwell Anderson, The Quality Instinct: Seeing Art through a Museum Director's Eye (Washington DC: American Association of Museums Press, 2012).
MCCM Newsletter, Fall/Winter 2012.
Rebecca Stone, The Jaguar Within: Shamanic Trance in Ancient Central and South American Art (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2011), 108-109, figures 5.18 - 5.21.
Rebecca R. Stone, "Empowered, Not Disabled: An Ancient Shaman Effigy Vessel at the Carlos Museum," Journal of Humanities in Rehabilitation (April 30, 2018): 4.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

Acquired by museum in 1991.

Provenance Information

Probably exported from Costa Rica by Enrique Vargas (Enrique Vargas Alfaro) (1915-208), San Jose, Costa Rica, March 21, 1973. Ex coll. William (1920-2002) and Carol (1921-2019) Thibadeau, Atlanta, Georgia, purchased from Vargas, March 1973.

Exhibition Information

Five Continents-Nine Millennia, Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, International Concourse E, Atlanta, Georgia, March 1997 - February 1, 1999
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, September 13, 2002 - June 2012
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, February 9, 2013 - February 6, 2017

Publication Information

Rebecca Stone-Miller, Seeing With New Eyes: Highlights of the Michael C. Carlos Museum Collection of Art of the Ancient Americas (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2002), 103, figure 208.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

Acquired by museum in 1991.004.269.

Provenance Information

Collected by Ray McKimm. Ex coll. James L. Taylor, Georgia.

Exhibition Information

MCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, May 11, 1993 - 2001;
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, September 13, 2002 - June 2012;
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, February 9, 2013 - May 13, 2019;
MCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, July 2, 2019 - Present

Publication Information

Rebecca Stone-Miller, Seeing With New Eyes: Highlights of the Michael C. Carlos Museum Collection of Art of the Ancient Americas (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2002), 133, figure 288ab.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

Gifted to museum in 1979.

Provenance Information

Collection of Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO by 1993 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, February 1993

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1997-2017

Publication Information

None known

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1992 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1997-2017

Publication Information

None known

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1974 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1996-2017

Publication Information

None known.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, May 28, 1972 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1996-2017

Publication Information

Abel-Vidor, Suzanne, et al. Principales Tipos Ceramicos de la Gran Nicoya. 13 (1/2):35-327. Vinculos. San Jose, Costa Rica: Museo Nacional de Costa Rica. 1987., Lange, Frederick W., Payson D. Sheets, Anibal Martinez, and Suzanne Abel-Vidor, eds. The Archaeology of Pacific Nicaragua. Albuquerque, NM: University of New Mexico Press. 1991.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

(Sotheby's), New York, November 20, 1989, lot 99; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1989 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] on loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1997-2017

Publication Information

None known

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Collection of Russell Bradford Hicken [1927-2003], Miami, FL; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO, 1987 [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1992

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1996-2017

Publication Information

None known

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1992, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.

Provenance Information

Probably (Enrique Vargas-Alfaro) [1915-2008], San Jose, Costa Rica and Atlanta, GA; Purchased by Frederick R. [1928-2007] and Jan Mayer, Denver, CO 1985 (?) [1]; Gifted to the Denver Art Museum, 2017
[1] On loan to the Denver Art Museum, 1993

Exhibition Information

On display in Museum's Pre-Columbian Galleries, 1996-2017

Publication Information

None known

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The Mayer collection of Costa Rican art distinguishes itself from other national and international collections for the depth and breadth of cultural and artistic styles represented therein. Assembled beginning in 1966, the objects represent the developmental arc of Costa Rican ceramics, metallurgy and stone carving and stands as the most comprehensive collection of Central American material culture outside of the region. Mr. and Mrs. Mayer began lending works in this gift to the Denver Art Museum in 1992 and since loan of this work in 1993, it has been on continuous display until 2017 in the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries. This gift complements the collection of Costa Rican material, also gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Mayer with the express purpose that the objects remain together in order for scholars to appreciate fully the development of Central American art, allow work to be put in the public domain, and facilitate further research.