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Small hand-sized pestle, cylindrical with end flaring to an oval butt, rounded by rocking back and forth motion.
Stone Pestle
Courtesy of the Harn Museum of Art, Photography by Foad Seyed Mohammadi

Stone Pestle

Artist Costa Rican Artist
Date300-1550
Place of originNicoya, Nicoya, Guanacaste, Costa Rica, North and Central America
MediumStone
Dimensions2 1/8 x 2 3/8 x 1 7/8 in. (5.4 x 6 x 4.8 cm)
ClassificationsFurnishings and Equipment
Object numberS-86-16
Collections
Visual DescriptionSmall hand-sized pestle, cylindrical with end flaring to an oval butt, rounded by rocking back and forth motion.
Pestle is a small conical shaped stone with slightly rounded butt. Mortar is a small bowl with flat base, wall rises at a steady outward slope with small raised ridge above base, thick walls with shallow cylindrical grinding area.
Mortar and Pestle
Costa Rican Artist
300-1550
Hand-sized grinding stone, egg-shaped with flattened bottom.
Grinding Stone
Costa Rican Artist
300-1550
Small stone naturally formed in diamond shape with a bulbous end emphasized by carved groove.
Small Grinding Stone (?)
Costa Rican Artist
undated
Large oval surface with shallow concavity, supported on 4 legs at corners, shaped to represent a feline's front & back legs. Tail coming from center edge on back, curving to attach at back of right hind foot. Feline head extending down from front rim. Ears are small nubs, with angular cut head and wide mouth with indicated teeth bared. Oval eyes with hollowed areas below on side of muzzle.
Jaguar Effigy Metate
Costa Rican Artist
undated
Stone tool of a slender rounded crescent shape, possibly used to smooth and shape objects (perhaps ceramics).
Stone Shaping Tool
Costa Rican Artist
undated
Stone tool, rounded crescent shape with wide carved groove (finger width) on inner side of curve - possibly used for smoothing and shaping.
Stone Shaping Tool
Costa Rican Artist
undated
four legged metate with oval shaped grinding plate, at one end is a jaguar head, at the other a tail, around the rim are images of trophy heads
Jaguar Effigy Metate
Costa Rican Artist
Period VI, Late Period, 1000-1522
Oval stone, small hand-held size, with wide groove carved around side forming at "V" - not completely encircling - one surface with seven grooves running lengthwise. Used to beat inner tree bark into pulp for paper and cloth.
Bark Beater
Costa Rican Artist
1-500
Four legged metate with oval shaped, rimmed, grinding plate, small nubbins on borders.
Metate with Monkey Figures
Costa Rican Artist
Period VI, Late Period, 1000-1522
Flat stone, roughly triangular in shape with narrow lines carved into surface, two parallel lines ring the stone on opposite ends with crisscrossing lines in between.
Incised Stone
Costa Rican Artist
undated
Small rounded jar with short, conical tripod legs, rounded bottom, curving outwards into wall, curving inwards on top half, raised neck with outward flaring rim. Coarse red ware with red slip, attached animal head and tail on opposite sides - small nub ears with pointy snout, short wide tail, ring of oval pills attached to wall between head and tail.
Small Tripod Jar with Animal Head
Costa Rican Artist
1000-1550
Spherical mace head with large cylindrical hole carved from top to bottom in center with simplified horned owl head design - cylindrical nubbins on top for ears, triangular hooked beak with large round eye panels, polished smooth surfaces
Owl-Head Mace Head
Costa Rican Artist
300-500

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