Pre-Columbian Art At Princeton, museum visitors can view the range of artistic production from the pre-Columbian past. Geographically, the collection ranges from Olmec to Chavin—two of the oldest cultures of Mesoamerica and South America, respectively—as well as fine Aleut and Eskimo ivories from North America and the Northwest Coast. The chronological and spatial ranges include hallmark examples from major ancient American cultures, and masterpieces of Mesoamerican art, particularly from the Olmec and Maya. The core of the collection was formed by Gillett G. Griffin in the 1960s, whose keen eye was attracted to elegant Olmec ceramics and jades and Maya Jaina figures in the earliest days of collecting such objects. His enthusiasm for small-scale objects—sculpture, jewelry, and other costume elements—has been the source of inspiration for several generations of Princeton alumni and friends to collect pre-Columbian art, many of whom have given significant objects and generously supported new acquisitions. The museum has organized several important exhibitions of pre-Columbian art, accompanied by scholarly catalogues, including Michael Coe’s Lords of the Underworld, one of the first exhibitions of Maya vase painting, in 1978, and The Olmec World: Ritual and Rulership, the first major presentation of Olmec portable art in the United States, in 1995. Xochipala, Guerrero, Mexico Seated Shaman and Seated Youth before 1500 B.C         Olmec, Veracruz, Mexico Shaman in Transformation Pose ca. 800 B.C.         Mexico/Guatemala, Maya Hauberg Stela A.D. 197         Peru, Mochica Flaring Vessel with Seven Warriors in a Landscape A.D. 200–500         Mexico, Campeche, Jaina, Maya Standing Figure A.D. 600–900         Maya, northern Peten Palace Scene with Beheading A.D. 600–900         Aztec, Oaxaca, Mexico Mask 15th century         N. American Indian, Eskimo, Punuk culture Two Whale Figures, and a Comb in the Form of a Whale’s Tail Prehistoric period         N. American Indian, Eskimo, Punuk culture Maskettes of Human Faces Prehistoric period         Museum Information | Calendar | Exhibitions | the Collection | Educational Resources | Special Projects | Press Room | Museum Shop | Membership | Site Index | Search | What’s New | Home

Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ 08544-1018 © 2002 Princeton University Art Museum