jade

Deep in the rainforest of Campeche in southern Mexico lies the ancient Maya city of Calakmul. Its symbol was a serpent. By Ruben and Gilda Perez, this elegant sculpture reproduces a mask depicting the 6th century ruler, Jaguar Claw. The artisans work in jade and stucco in a painstaking labor that takes some seven days to complete. The museum replica arrives with a brass and pinewood display stand, and can also be displayed on the wall.

Ancient Maya craftspeople were masters at the delicate art of relief sculptures in stucco. Ruben and Gilda Perez utilize the material to create a beautiful mask with jade inlay. Faithfully reproducing an archaeological piece from Palenque, they depict the sun god, an image buried in the tomb of Pacal, or "Shield Jaguar." The king is interred beneath the Temple of the Inscriptions, and this jade mask is a one of the many offerings found there. The Guatemalan artisans present the mask on a brass and pinewood display stand, and it can also be displayed on the wall.

By Ruben and Gilda Perez, this beautiful mask depicts a bat, considered a rain god by both the Aztec and Maya cultures. During the dry season, masks such as this were used as a means of communication between humans and the deity in a request for rain. The artisans work in jade and stucco, carefully crafting a replica of a Mexican archaeological piece found in the Zapotec site of Monte Alban, Oaxaca. These replicas can take some seven days to complete. It arrives with a brass and pinewood display stand, and can also be displayed on the wall.

His expression is one of wisdom and perhaps sorrow. By Ruben and Gilda Perez, this elegant sculpture is a replica of a mask discovered in El Naranjo, Guatemala. The artisans work in jade and stucco in a painstaking labor that takes some seven days to complete. The museum replica arrives with a brass and pinewood display stand, and can also be displayed on the wall.