Jadeite Mask
The Olmecs were a Mesoamerican group of people that lived in what is now known as Mexico from 1200-400 BCE. Greenstones (chalchihuitl in Nahuatl) were crucial to the Olmec people; they can represent fertility (life). This specific mask is made out of jadeite (a type of greenstone), but it is a mask that was probably not worn by people because of the lack of holes in the eyes, mouth, nose. However, this particular mask is thought to be a “were-jaguar” which is popular in Olmec tradition. A were-jaguar has both human and feline characteristics. (1) The feline characteristics shown in this mask include: the open, toothless mouth, and the human characteristics include almond shaped eyes and wide nose (which are traits of Olmec people). (2) The purpose of this mask was probably to represent the importance of a were-jaguar in this culture, and if it were to have been able to be worn then it would have another meaning in which the wearer can transform into an animal, spirit, or deity.
1. Metmuseum.org. Accessed April 15, 2021. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/310279.
2. Thompson, J. Eric S. "An Olmec Mask from the Maya Lowlands." American Antiquity 34, no. 4 (1969): 478-80. doi:10.2307/277747.