Stone Chisel
Unknown Artist
before 16th century
Medium
Stone
Dimensions
Height 4 in.
Classification
Stone-Implements
Culture
Mexican
Department
Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Arthur M. Bullowa, 1993
Accession Number
1994.35.411
Art Historical Context
This compact stone chisel, standing just 4 inches tall, hails from pre-16th century Mexico and exemplifies the practical ingenuity of ancient Mesoamerican craftsmen. Carved entirely from stone, it belongs to the classification of stone implements, tools essential for shaping wood, bone, or other materials in daily life and ritual practices. Now housed in the Metropolitan Museum Art's Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and Americas—thanks to the 1993 bequest of Arthur M. Bullowa offers a tangible link to indigenous technologies before European contact. Dating to the pre-Columbian era, ...