A Maya Polychrome Chocolate Cup, Maya Lowlands, Late Classic Period, ca. 600 – 800 CE

A finely potted cylindrical vessel with gently flaring walls, known as an uk’ib (“drinking cup”), used for the consumption of cacao in elite feasting and ritual contexts. Decorated in a classic polychrome palette of red, orange, cream, and black, the exterior is organized into horizontal registers. A band of pseudo-glyphs appears below an upper register of repeating circular motifs, rather than at the rim. These are not legible hieroglyphs but deliberate imitations of script, a feature seen on many Late Classic vessels where the visual authority of writing was evoked without conveying a specific text.

The main field presents a bold, graphic composition dominated by a U-shaped, curvilinear element with rounded terminals. This motif may represent a highly stylized serpent, reduced to its essential form, with the circular elements suggesting simplified heads or eyes. In Maya visual language, serpents are associated with rulership, ceremony, and controlled access to power, aligning with the elite function of cacao vessels. Though partially worn, the composition retains a strong graphic presence characteristic of Late Classic courtly ceramics.

The vessel was hand-built using the coil method, then finished with slips and burnishing before low-temperature firing. The result is a refined surface with a painterly quality typical of high-level Maya ceramic production. This example reflects the technical and artistic skill achieved by Maya ceramicists during the Late Classic period, combining a well-resolved form with a painted program that balances abstraction and symbolic content. 

Medium: Clay

Dimensions: Height: 5 3/4 inches (14.6 cm)

Condition: A small loss to the lower wall and base, professionally restored, otherwise complete and reassembled from several large pieces. Visible age-related wear with scattered areas of surface abrasion and pigment loss throughout. Regardless, it presents well and is a great example.

Provenance: Property from a New York City Collection, purchased from Parke Bernet, November 26, 1974, sale number 386, lot 88J, with lot stickers and a copy of the sale invoice.

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