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Macintosh Picture Format  |  1996-09-10  |  185.9 KB  |  640x310  |  8-bit (207 colors)
   ocr: and the almond-shaped eyes placed on top of the head lead us to surmise that this figure may represent a chief or a shaman who has transformed himself into a jaguar- -the most powerful hunter in the forests of Mexico and Central America- -to partake of its power. With its economical, taut carving, in which not a single line or mark is wasted, the brilliant sculpture is among the finest jade carvings in history. It came to the Museum in 1891. Jade is an exceptionally hard material, and itt took great skill to carve it with the stone tools used by early artists. To create the basic shape of a sc ...