Las Limas Monument 1 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Las Limas Monument 1 |
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At highest resolution, the shallow incisions on the shoulders, legs, and face can be clearly seen
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| Material | Greenstone |
| Height | 55 cm (22 in) |
| Created | Middle Formative Period (1000 BCE – 600 BCE) |
| Discovered | 1965 near Jesús Carranza, Veracruz, Mexico |
| Present location | Xalapa Museum of Anthropology, Veracruz |
| Culture | Olmec |
Las Limas Monument 1, also known as the Las Limas figure or the Señor de las Limas, is a 55 centimetres (22 in) greenstone figure of a youth holding a limp were-jaguar baby. Found in the State of Veracruz, Mexico, in the Olmec heartland, the statue is famous for its incised representations of Olmec supernaturals. It is the largest known greenstone sculpture.
History
The statue is 55 cm (22 in) high, 42 cm (17 in) wide, and weighs an estimated 60 kg (130 lb). It was probably carved during the Middle Formative Period, some time between 1000 and 600 BCE).
The statue was discovered in near Jesús Carranza, Veracruz, by two local children, Rosa and Severiano Paschal Manuel. Dug out and taken to their nearby home, it was declared "La Virgen de las Limas" and set up on its own altar. Word of the find reached archaeologists in Xalapa. After promising to keep the statue on display and to build a local school, the archaeologists moved the sculpture to the Xalapa Museum of Anthropology, in Veracruz.
Five years later, in October 1970, the statue was stolen from the museum, only later to be found in a motel room in San Antonio, Texas; it had been apparently too famous to be sold on the black market. It was subsequently restored to display at the Xalapa Museum of Anthropology.
See also
In Spanish: Señor de Las Limas para niños
