Miao Saddle

Saddle, 20^th century

Miao people; Guizhou Province , China

Silver

Gift of Richard and Mary Cramer

2009.16.1

For young Miao women, when it comes to personal adornment, the more silver one has the better, and one’s beauty is marked by the heaviness of her ornaments. Young women of marriageable age take part in courting festivals where they hope to attract suitable mates. Covered from head to toe in silver headdresses, necklaces, earrings, bracelets and other jewelry, a girl’s shining ensembles sometimes weighs more than twenty pounds. These brilliant visual displays of wealth are intended to capture the attention of available men, and are advertisements of a young woman’s dowry to be transferred to her future husband family upon marriage. The sight of a horse specially outfitted with a silver saddle is an ultimate display of wealth. Horses are relied upon for both transportation and cultivation and are symbols of prestige and affluence; they are also included in Miao marriage processions. Like silver, horses may become part of a young woman’s dowry.

This saddle is made of wood, overstretched with leather, and fitted with sheets of pounded silver. It is completely covered in designs that signify happiness, fertility, posterity and harmony. Fan-tailed dragons float among clouds and flames of fire, and flank the sides of a flaming pearl; below two fish appear. Happy human figures can be seen within the branches of flowering trees. A phoenix and a dragon playfully face a sun, and two phoenixes with swirling tail feathers are on the rear of the saddle. Miao silversmiths mimic the motifs found within embroidered, woven and batik-dyed special occasion textiles which are exquisitely made by women. These motifs are usually part of some historic or mythic narrative or have a specific significance to the Miao who traditionally lack a written language.

Prehistoric Maze Stone

Maze Stone, prehistoric
Gabrieliño/Juaneño people; Trabuco Canyon, California
Granite; 6 1/2 tons
Bowers Museum Collection

The mysterious granite Maze Stone rests at the base of the giant prickly pear cactus in the Key Courtyard of the Bowers. Much speculation has arisen regarding the maze-like petroglyphs inscribed on its surface, considerably dimmed now by weather erosion. It is postulated that the stone played a part in the ritual of an ancient people, however no definitive explanation of its use is known.













Maze Rock at Trabuco Canyon, 1885
Unknown photographer
Photograph; 7 x 12 in.
6538

Puzzle or maze designs are often seen in Southern California rock art; the maze is often used as a philosophical depiction of life. Maze designs are also used in basketry in Arizona and elsewhere around the world. Similarly marked boulders have been discovered in San Diego, Riverside, and Imperial Counties, usually in prominent positions on high ridged or hills.













Maze Rock and its Discoverer J.C. Joplin, 1885
Unknown photographer
Photograph; 3 1/2 x 5 3/4 in.
6554

The stone was found by J. C. Joplin in 1885 in a ridge between Bell and lower Trabuco Canyons, an area where no other signs of Indian habitation were found. The maze stone was brought to Bowers Museum in the early thirties. The several-ton stone is one of the Museum’s oldest Indian artifacts and remains an unsolved mystery.

All text and images under copyright. Please contact Collection Department for permission to use.

Boiken Pottery Mask

Pottery Mask, early-mid 20th century
Boiken people; East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea, Melanesia
Ceramic; 7 1/4 in. diameter
2009.2.1
Purchase made possible by the Bowers Museum General Acquisitions
Fund

Ceramic works of art made and used ceremonially rather than for utilitarian purposes are known to exist among only a handful of cultures in Papua New Guinea, making this pottery mask a precious and extraordinary addition to the museum’s permanent collection. The disc-shaped face and sharply protruding beak are avian features. The round eye openings are intense and overall the mask is captivating, exuding originality and character. Too small to fit a human face, it is unclear exactly how the pottery mask was used although the piercings around the edges indicate that it was intended to be attached to some structure. It is very likely that it was placed in a healing shrine made up of an assortment of miscellaneous items such as bones, stones and carved figures thought to possess magical and curative powers.

This mask originates from a Boiken village west of Wewak in East Sepik Province where documentation and published findings on pottery production have focused on food containers and vessels. Figurative pottery is practically an untouched subject because of the scarcity of these forms; only one other known example of a mask with characteristics similar to the one pictured here is known. Unfortunately, Boiken pottery production is endangered with few potters remaining to carry on the tradition. Men, not women, have been responsible for the creation of ceramic wares, employing the coiling method when constructing bowls and vessels. This mask was also made with a coiling technique to which the nose was later applied in relief.

All text and images under copyright. Please contact the Collection Department for permission to use.

Something Big is Happening at Bowers!

They have lined the most famous avenues and plazas in the world and now Fernando Botero’s monumental sculptures come to Bowers Museum, Santa Ana. Three beautiful, big and bronze works of art by the acclaimed artist are on view in the musuem’s Key Courtyard as part of the upcoming exhibition The Baroque World of Fernando Botero.

Fernando Botero
Smoking Woman, 1987
Bronze; 73 x 141 3/4 x 34 1/4 in.

Fernando Botero
The Rape of Europa, 1999
Bronze; 81 1/2 x 71 3/4 x 122 in.

Fernando Botero
Hand, 1985
Bronze; 102 1/4 x 55 x 69 in.

Getting these monumental artworks upright and placed was no easy feat. Weighing in at between 1 and 3 tons, it took a forklift and four men to move, uncrate and place these playful and irresistibly attractive sculptures. You can view over 20 more images of this challenging exhibit by joining us on Facebook or join us on Twitter for museum updates.

















Round and voluminous treatment of the figure is the signature of the artist’s unmistakable style. Read more about artist Fernando Botero in the gorgeous full color exhibition catalog available in our gift store. Enjoy these sculptures and nearly 100 other paintings, works on paper and sculptures at the much anticipated exhibition opening Saturday, September 12, 2009.

This exhibition is organized and circulated by Art Services International, Alexandria, Virginia. All images and text under copyright. Please contact Collection Department for permission to use.