Rare Double Vessel Parrot. - BIG AND NICE - Colima, Mexico, 100 BC - 250 AD Terracotta 21 cm long, 10,5 cm height and 14 cm width Provenance: - Private collection, Paris, France, 1970-1980. Thence by descendent. - Private collection, Barcleona. Public auction 2024. Documents: - Spanish Export License Condition: Good, see photos. Documents: With Spanish Export license. The Colima people lived in northwest Mexico, in a rugged, low-lying coastal region carved by valleys, each with its own ecology and a warm, humid climate. The history of the Colima people is not well known, but, like many Mesoamerican cultures, the Colima displayed some stylistic elements that links them with the ancient Olmecs. Colima ceramics display a wide variety of figures and shapes, but little variation in technique. Most pieces have a burnished red finish and some are decorated with orange or white incisions. Molded figures are common, especially of plants, animals (especially dogs) and seashells. Human representations typically feature dwarfs and hunchbacks more than others, and few female forms. Many of these figures have “coffee-bean” eyes and are dressed in finely detailed traditional attire. Little is known of Colima stonework; only a few pieces such as mace heads, small masks and figurines have been found. These people also practiced basketweaving and weaving, and used metallurgy to make objects such as needles, axes, rattles, nose rings and ear ornaments. The vast majority of ceramic pieces that have been ascribed to this culture are grave goods found in the tombs of individuals of high social rank. The Colima buried their dead in family tombs up to 30 meters deep, some with multiple chambers. The bodies were accompanied by a wide variety of grave goods, including ceramic statuettes of armed men, which served as symbolic guardians. Ceramic sculptures of dogs were another common grave good, and were believed to be the emissaries of Xolotl, the god of death.