Continuing with the Olmecs, I noticed, while researching for my post about the supposed African admixture into the Olmeca people in Pre-Hispanic America, that not all sculptures and statues depicted people with African features.
I was quite surprised to see that many Olmec artifacts depicted people with a very clear East Asian appearance. In this post we will explore their artwork with non-African features, and what some scholars have written about these oriental-looking depictions.
See my two previous posts on the Olmecs: Blacks in Pre-Columbian America and Africans reached America ca. 1310 C.E.?
Jaguar Men: the were-jaguar
Those who have studied the Olmec culture find that their artwork depicts people with feline features, and this has led to the concept of a jaguar-based symbolism used by the ruling class and the religious leaders and shamans. Of course, we cannot decipher their writing, and there are no Olmecs to tell us about their beliefs. These theories are just that, conjectures.
As an example of this notion, I will quote from the following essay: Slater, F., (2010). Were-jaguars and jaguar babies in Olmec religion, Essex Student Journal 3(2). doi: https://doi.org/10.5526/esj114.
"Digs at sites such as La Venta have yielded an abundance of finds, testament to the sophistication and artistic sensitivity of this ancient culture. Of these finds, one particular type has spurred the most debate and speculation. The delicately carved and gracefully composed anthropomorphic hybrid figures, known as Were-Jaguars and Jaguar-Babies respectively, have puzzled scholars for decades....
The Jaguar Motif appears in a variety of different guises. The essential elements of the Were-Jaguar or Jaguar-Baby are, the ‘V’ shaped cleft, clawed or paw like feet or hands and a feline head with, in some cases, a tail. With Jaguar-Babies the iconography is of a greater symbolic content and is based on facial features. These include; The ‘V’ shaped cleft, large almond shaped eyes, a snarling mouth with bifurcated fangs and full down-turned lips and a broad flat nose. Different levels of ‘jaguarness’ are visible in these images, with some being unmistakeably jaguar like. Others have a much more subtle pars pro toto style, which is typical of Olmec iconography...
Whilst we can never know for certain the significance of the jaguar to Olmec religious view we can be certain of their importance. Whilst it is always difficult to assert with any confidence about the mystical practices of cultures long dead, the frequency of this motif is an excellent starting point for investigation, leading no doubt to the wealth of literature dealing with the subject. In my opinion, the Jaguar was an important symbol of the power of the natural world, as the apex predator of the surrounding area it would be natural for the jaguar to be subsumed into the iconography of any burgeoning chiefdom, which might later become the “royal house” (if such a term can be used accurately). However, the jaguar would always first and foremost be the creature that most played on the popular imagination and, before any conflation with the trappings of state, would indubitably have become a major part of the religious complex. As for the possibility of human/jaguar copulation, it is extremely difficult to draw any meaningful conclusions as to the significance of the jaguar motif, especially when it comes to the possibility of sexual intercourse. Those Monuments where copulation can be inferred - transmit just that - an inference."
Were-Jaguar Olmec figurine, 900-300 BC. Source
Down Syndrome
An article by John M. Starbuck, (2011) (On the Antiquity of Trisomy 21: Moving Towards a Quantitative Diagnosis of Down Syndrome in Historic Material Culture. the Journal of Contemporary Anthropology Research, Vol. II-1) put forward the idea that these statues depict people with Down Syndrome who were worshiped because they resembled their idea of a person which blende human and jaguar features:
"Milton and Gonzalo (1974) argue that several Olmec figurines from Meso-America dated from 1500 B.C. – 300 A.D. may depict Down syndrome. Milton and Gonzalo report that these figurines have upslanted palpebral fissures, well-marked epicanthic folds, short noses, broad nasal bridges, brachycephalic head shapes, open mouth postures, and a lower lip that is drawn downward. Kunze and Nippert (1986) have also diagnosed an Olmec figurine with Down syndrome because of the presence of slanted palpebral fissures, ocular hypotelorism, short extremities, and obesity. In addition to asserting that these figurines depict Down syndrome, Milton and Gonzalo (1974) argue that the religious beliefs of the Olmec culture may have ascribed a high status to individuals with trisomy 21 because they were thought to be the offspring of a mating between humans and the jaguar, which was the most powerful Olmec totem."
Below is an image depicting a were-jaguar, it has clear feline features, with jaguar ears, and sharp teeth in a snarling mouth. It does not look oriental, it is a man-jaguar:
Olmec figurines depicting adults
The following artworks have a very strong oriental look to them. They are not babies, but men:
Olmec Jadeite face, 900-400 BC. The Met
Olmec contortionist, Middle pre-Classical period, 900-400 BCE. Acrobat made of steatite. Source
Some believe the "Wrestler" shown below, with his mustache and goatee is a fake, a forgery that was created to resemble Olmec art. Others say it is authentic. It is remarkable as it hints at motion, and has unique features that don't look like an Amerindian at all!
The Wrestler, basalt, Olmec statue. 1,400-400 BC. Source
Lord of Las Limas, Olmec, Veracruz, 1,200-400 BC. Serpentine with pyrite eyes.
Comments
The Olmecs are better known for their gigantic Afro-looking heads, like the one shown below. The delicate and finely crafted figures with oriental features when compared with these massive and coarsely hewen heads look as if they were the creation of different societies and civilizations. This is quite intriguing. One one hand, small detailed objects, on the other 40 ton, 3 meter tall (10 ft.) colossal heads. Were they produced at different times, during different cultural periods?
Notice how the gigantic head, despite its lips, and flat nose bridge has oriental eyes!
This goes to show that a culture can display many different styles of art, even if they use the same media (stone) and that the creative inspiration in humans is vast. We'd never infer that the Olmecs were were-jaguars just because they made these statues, so why do we wonder if they were Africans that sailed to America, if we see statues with African features?
I do believe that people depict their beliefs and also portray themselves. The oriental-looking figures are not gods, or were-jaguars, they are people, people with pronounced Asian-like epicanthic folds, the skin that covers the inner corner of the eye (canthus). Interestingly, they have high nose bridges, which is not so common among East Asians. So it isn't likely that they depicted visitors from China, Japan, or Korea that sailed across the Pacific Ocean 3500 years ago. They could easily represent a Native American, who share both features. And so do the Polynesians!).
Patagonian Monsters -
Cryptozoology, Myths & legends in Patagonia
Copyright 2009-2025 by Austin Whittall ©
