Existing comment:
Maya (Mexico or Guatemala)
Miniature Mosaic Mask, AD 600-900
Many Pre-Columbian peoples considered jade to be sacred and used it to make objects indicative of royal status. The image below shows an 8th-century Maya king and his wife in a scene carved in a lintel above a temple doorway. Hanging from the king's necklace and his wife's pectoral are small jade masks similar to the example displayed here. |