Bowl
Unknown Artist
13th–15th century
Medium
Ceramic
Dimensions
W. 15 in. (38.1 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Containers
Culture
Taíno
Department
Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Mary R. Morgan, Mary O'Boyle II and Mr. and Mrs. Frederick E. Landmann Gifts; The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller and Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, by exchange, and Gift of Nathan Cummings, by exchange, 1984
Accession Number
1984.201
Art Historical Context
This expansive ceramic bowl, crafted by an unknown Taíno artist the 13th and 15th centuries, exemplifies sophisticated pottery traditions of the Taíno, the indigenous inhabitants of the Caribbean islands like Hispaniola (modern-day Haiti and Dominican Republic), Puerto Rico, and Cuba. Measuring a generous 15 inches (38.1 cm) in width, its broad, open form suggests practical use as a container for food storage, serving, or communal rituals in daily life and ceremonies. The Taíno thrived in complex chiefdom societies during this late pre-Columbian era, just before Christopher Columbus's arrival ...