Taíno Bottle Neck

Taíno terra-cotta bottle neck from Puerto Rico curated at the Natural History Society of Maryland. The bottle neck likely dates to approximately 1200-1400 AD and was donated to the Natural History Society of Maryland sometime in the 1930s or 1940s. According to the TainoMuseum.org: Ceramic bottle as a mixture of Chican and ostionoid style. Bottles such as these represent the divisions of the Taino universe into male - female, living - dead, and cultural – super supernatural spheres. The vessels shoulders represent female breast, and the spout represents a male phallus. Faces representing twins, look off in opposite directions to show the duality of good and evil in all natural forces. Courtesy of the Natural History Society of Maryland which has given permission for the model to be downloadable for non-commercial educational purposes.