Anthromorphic Figural Vessel in Blackened Terracotta

A gaper is a stone or wooden figurehead, often depicting a Moor, Muslim, or North African. The figurehead first appeared in the late 16th century as a hangout sign used outside the storefronts of drug stores in the Netherlands. The meaning of gaper is the same in English; the figurehead is always displayed with an open mouth, sometimes with a pill resting on his tongue. The gaper's gaping tongue could represent the intake of medicine and grimace represents the bitter taste of the medicine. The gaper takes on various appearances that are symbolic of the origin for the pharmacist...

Seated terracotta Figure with nose-ring, Quimbaya culture, 17th C

Neapolitan nativity scenes are very different from those seen in churches due to the importance of secular settings. They are not limited to staging the child Jesus surrounded by the holy family. Still, they managed to reproduce the daily life of the Neapolitans of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The elegance of the figuration and the fineness of the execution of these santons also reveals the quality of the know-how of the Neapolitan artisans. The markets, hotels, dances, itinerant vendors, beggars, taverns, various trades, guarding herds, the royal procession and all that was within reach of everyday life or fantasy had their place in the Neapolitan crèches...

This small head of a ceramic figure with a bird headdress is probably Pre-Columbian. It seems to originate from the territory of present-day Mexico. Fur...

Contemporary figural unglazed terracotta sculpture of an abstract reclining figure. An homage to sculptor Henry Moore. Made in 2019 by Oklahoma artist Emily Ladow Reynolds. Dimen...

This standing effigy figure was crafted in 300 BC from the ancient Chupicuaro region of Mexico and was likely used as a ritual or burial offering. The ceramic works of the Chupicuaro...

This intriguing redware figure was crafted in 400 A.D. from the ancient Teotihuacan region of Mexico. Earthenware figurines were made in great abundance throughout Teotihuacan's history. After 250 A.D. objects made from clay increased dramatically, serving a wide variety of purposes and functions from religious rituals to burial offerings. Figurines like this commemorated important people and events within the city of Teotihuacan and other parts of Mesoamerica, portraying individuals of different rank and status such as soldiers, merchants, bureaucrats, and occasionally divinities. This figure is adorned with an elaborate headdress, a thick beaded necklace...

Terracotta bulldog Bavent signed Filmont, circa 1900.