Mexican Horn Comb

Although the silver mines of Taxco are the most famous region for Mexican jewelry, illustrations of modern life were also inked on horn combs.

This piece was made in the 1970’s. Mairin Bulldozer Connor identified the bird as a Tricolored Heron catching a bass on Mexico’s Pacific Coast. What I love about it is that both predator and prey express emotion. From The Creative Museum:

From real life

कंघी

For more scholarly research, please examine

A Bird Finding Guide to Mexico

William Spratling and the Mexican Silver Renaissance: Maestros de Plata

Mexican Silver: Modern Handwrought Jewelry & Metalwork (Schiffer Book for Collectors)

3 thoughts on “Mexican Horn Comb

  1. Mairin Bulldozer Connor

    This bird looks a little more like a Tricolored Heron to me, with that characteristic crest of plumes on the head. I believe they spend the winter in Mexico. It could also be a Great Blue Heron, which has much longer plumes on the head, & lives year-round in Mexico, but I lean more toward the possibility that it’s the Tricolored Heron.

    Reply

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