Cuff Bracelet (Brazalete)

* Nearly 20,000 images of artworks the museum believes to be in the public domain are available to download on this site. Other images may be protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights. By using any of these images you agree to LACMA's Terms of Use.

Cuff Bracelet (Brazalete)

Mexico, circa 1938-1944
Jewelry and Adornments; bracelets
Silver, amethyst
2 1/4 × 3 1/2 × 2 in. (5.72 × 8.89 × 5.08 cm)
Gift of Ronald A. Belkin (M.2013.4.10)
Not currently on public view

Label

The central motif of this bracelet is the calendrical symbol Nahui Ollin (Four Movement/Earthquake)—the sign for the fifth and current era of creation....
The central motif of this bracelet is the calendrical symbol Nahui Ollin (Four Movement/Earthquake)—the sign for the fifth and current era of creation. In Aztec mythology the earth had been created five times, but natural forces—wind, rain, fire, and floods—had destroyed previous eras. The symbol, which was carved on stone reliefe and illustrated in indigenous codices, was redeployed by Spratling in what became one of his trademark early designs.
More...