Terracotta Polychrome Ocarina

Music is as universal as a smile. Ocarinas are musical instruments of the New World. They come in a variety of sizes, producing tones ranging from that of a tenor recorder to that of a shrill whistle. The mouthpiece and the size of the resonance chamber were modified to produce different tones. Bedecked in beautiful polychrome colors and designs, this jaguar is a very special ocarina. Ocarinas are found in high- status a tomb that leads us to believe that they belonged to important people in society. This also leads us to believe that they were used in a ritual context, not for ordinary usage. Although jaguars are usually depicted snarling and dangerous, this jaguar appears to be smiling underneath his button nose and wide-staring eyes; He almost resembles a beloved domestic cat. The tail of the animal has been cleverly transformed into the mouthpiece. Such an elaborate and beautiful ocarina of the jaguar allows us to assume that an ancient person proudly possessed this musical instrument centuries ago. It still maintains its aura of beauty in the present.