Family artifacts -- Mayan/Aztec?

[s3raphim]

Hello,

I am new to this forum and am looking for assistance in identifying a variety of artifacts. My family has collected indigenous artifacts and antiques for decades, mostly in the SW. I was recently informed that I will soon inherit a box of artifacts from an uncle who passed away many years ago. He collected in the late 50's through the early 70's, throughout the SW and Mexico. Most of his collection was ransacked, but this one box has survived and has been passed down. These items were essentially kept in a closet until recently.

I don't intend to sell any of these items, because I can't imagine they're worth more than the joy of owning something from a mysterious past. However, I would like a basic sense of what region and era they may come from, and perhaps even approx value.

I don't have photos of all of the items, but here are a few samples of the collection. Again, the family understanding is that my uncle personally collected/discovered these items while on trips into deep Mexico in the 1960's to 1970's. Unfortunately, we're not sure exactly where, or how.

Any pointers or info appreciated!

 

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[unclemac]

need better photos , sorry

 

[BosnMate]

need better photos , sorry

Yes, can't see well enough. Also something to relate size.

 

[s3raphim]

I've posted the largest/best quality photos I currently have at Flikr:

Artifacts - a set on Flickr

I'll clearly need to have these seriously photographed -- and can do so by the end of the month. In the meantime, these Flikr photos are the best I've got, and I appreciate ANY pointers.

What do people do who suddenly come into artifacts? Find an appraiser... museum... forums like this?

Much obliged.

 

[CRUSADER]

I've posted the largest/best quality photos I currently have at Flikr:

Artifacts - a set on Flickr

I'll clearly need to have these seriously photographed -- and can do so by the end of the month. In the meantime, these Flikr photos are the best I've got, and I appreciate ANY pointers.

What do people do who suddenly come into artifacts? Find an appraiser... museum... forums like this?

Much obliged.

Explain?; 'suddenly come into artifacts'

 

[s3raphim]

I cant be the only one to "come into artifacts" via inheritance? Just curious how to go about finding what these artifacts are.

 

[unclemac]

the very best thing you can do with these is contact the museum in your cultural area.

http://www.mna.inah.gob.mx/ these guys should be able to help. Or look for one in Guadalajara, it is also a big university town and will have resources. On the down side....A LOT of meso-American stuff is made for the contemporary decor and has been for the last several decades. On the plus side, your stuff doesn't look all that typical of these sorts of items...you have some pretty utilitarian stuff in the mix which is not all that attractive in a tourist stall.

 

[CRUSADER]

I cant be the only one to "come into artifacts" via inheritance? Just curious how to go about finding what these artifacts are.

We are still lacking the details that might help. Which country are you in?

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

What do people do who suddenly come into artifacts? Find an appraiser... museum... forums like this?

Much obliged.

i'd find legal documentation first...then make an appointment with someone at the local university...

 

[s3raphim]

We are still lacking the details that might help. Which country are you in?

I am in the United States. The artifacts reside in the United States. They were collected in the 1960's (and possibly as late as the early 1970's) by my uncle while in Mexico. There are family stories that he was involved in excavation back then (legal or illegal I don't know), and he also traded and collected privately amongst a small network. There is no legal documentation that I am aware of.

I'm not sure how Indian artifact collectors understood the legal issues back in the 1960's? I've been told that the law regulating artifacts from Mexico was passed in 1972, but not sure how it might or might not apply to artifacts collected before then... particularly when there is no legal documentation? Without the legal framework that seems to exist today, how was artifact collecting and trading understood back then?

My uncle had an extensive collection, but most of it was stolen right after he died, and this one box of artifacts survived and was passed down through a few relatives who stored them. Now that they're coming to me, I have interest in identifying them. Again, not looking to sell anything or do anything sketchy w/ them at all. In doing a bit of internet research the last few days, it seems like this is a bit of a controversial topic.

It sounds like the consensus here is that I should get quality photographs and approach a museum or two.

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

the very best thing you can do with these is contact the museum in your cultural area.

http://www.mna.inah.gob.mx/ these guys should be able to help. Or look for one in Guadalajara, it is also a big university town and will have resources. On the down side....A LOT of meso-American stuff is made for the contemporary decor and has been for the last several decades. On the plus side, your stuff doesn't look all that typical of these sorts of items...you have some pretty utilitarian stuff in the mix which is not all that attractive in a tourist stall.

do not under any conditions re enter mexico with pre maya cultural artifacts...worse than firearms or ammo...

 

[unclemac]

...which is why you send pictures....works for me in the past in similar situations.

 

[tamrock]

Would you at all care to share the name of your uncle who was the collector of these artifacts? There could be more on him and his collection found in research. Do you know when and where the flickr photo's had been taken? I see a name Sean Dimond attached to the flickr photo's. I also find a Sean Dimond involved in what looks like and oganization called Argos Intl' doing missions type work in Central America. If he is the photographer of these artifacts. Look him up and maybe he could tell you somthing about the items.

 

[BosnMate]

Can't say that I know what I'm talking, but my brother had some stuff like the flat head that is lying above the pipe in the third picture, top row. He said about the ones he had that they are Aztec, and at one time those were very common in Mexico. About 1960 or 61 he spent a year of so down there, and came home with a pocket full of heads and similar small things, I remember one was kind of a small animal head, others looked like the one in the picture, and he had a stone ear plug or two. My brother told me at that time those heads were very common, that the Aztec farmers would place them in their fields every year when they planted their crops. This was to appease the gods and insure a good crop. Most of the time he was south of Mexico City and said they were so common nobody paid much attention to them. I wouldn't try bringing anything out now though, even if nobody cares when you pick it up, and I sure wouldn't take it back, or even send a picture and ask anyone in Mexico. It's not a two way street down there. They come here and get away with most anything, but go down there one is advised to be careful. Personally I'm not going down there for any reason, in fact I wouldn't even send my picture to Mexico.