A Taino Turtle Effigy...

Description

A Taino Turtle Effigy
Dominican Republic, c. 1000-1500 AD

A naturalistic carving in light gray stone of a sea turtle with legs withdrawn. The head with short beak and large circular eyes, the shell in a scalloped pattern. In very good condition, minor scrapes and scratches. "C/26" is inscribed in india ink on the underside.

Accompanied by expertise by Dr. William Keegan, Chairman and Curator of Anthropology, Department of Natural History, Florida Museum of Natural History.

Provenance:
Collected by Wilfred Belmar, Dominican Republic, c. 1930s
Belmar was born in the Dominican Republic. The collection (lots 70267 - 70272) was amassed in the 1930s - 1940s. In the 1950s, Belmar moved with these items to Tobago, where he died in 1980. Through the family by descent.

In 2015 this was vetted as authentic by Taino scholar Dr. William Keegan, Chairman and Curator of Anthropology, Department of Natural History, Florida Museum of Natural History and professor of Anthropology and Curator of Latin American Studies, University of Florida, Miami. In addition, upon Dr. Keegan's recommendation, this was vetted as authentic by Dr. John F. Scott, professor emeritus of Art History, University of Florida. Dr. Scott has studied Pre-Columbian art for more than 58 years, the Taino in particular. He is the author of important books: Before Cortes (co-author with Elizabeth Easby); The Art of the Taino of the Dominican Republic; and Latin American Art: Ancient and Modern, as well as many other scholarly publications (see references below). He was an exchange professor in Santo Domingo at the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henriquex Urena and did extensive research in the Dominican Republic and Haiti in the late 1980s.

Exhibited:
The Museum of Native American History, Bentonville, AR, 2016-2019

Length: 3 inches

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