Sculpture of Taino Head

The Taino people are an indigenous group of semi-sedentary, Arawakan-speaking people who traditionally inhabited much of the Caribbean (Encyclopaedia Britannica 2017). After Spanish colonization, the Taino were almost completely decimated, however groups were able to survive in parts of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Florida (Encyclopaedia Britannica 2017). Taino religion consisted mainly of a hierarchical system of natural spirits and ancestors called Zemi, several of which were recorded by the Spanish upon colonization (The Met). This sculpture of a head is likely a representation of one of these Zemi, as Zemi idols were commonly used in religious ceremonies (The Met). This particular sculpture is from Puerto Rico and is speculated to have been made between the 13^th and 15^th centuries, before the Taino people encountered the Spanish (The Met).

This sculpture helps to provide some insight into what Puerto Rico was like before the period of encounter with Europeans starting in the 1490s, since after the arrival of the colonizers, indigenous cultures in the Caribbean were almost completely wiped out. As Chasteen states, although the relationship between the indigenous Caribbean people and the Spanish started off with trade, it quickly turned into the enslavement of groups like the Taino and eventual death as many fell ill with European diseases (2016, 39). After succeeding in conquering the Caribbean, the Spanish began to explore further into Central and South America, using the Caribbean as a base (Chasteen 2016, 39). Furthermore, since they already had experience in overtaking the indigenous inhabitants of the Caribbean, by the time the Spanish reached the huge Aztec and Inca empires, they were better prepared to take them over (Chasteen 2016, 40). For the Spanish, colonization also had deep religious motives. Thus, the Taino sculpture is important in showing what religion was like in Puerto Rico before the arrival and spread of Catholicism. Spanish priests were also known for searching out and taking sacred objects from indigenous groups, therefore the mere fact that this sculpture was not taken or destroyed is impressive (Chasteen 2016, 47).

Works Cited:

Chasteen, John Charles. Born in Blood and Fire: a Concise History of Latin America. 4th ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Art of Oceania, Africa, and the Americas from the Museum of Primitive Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1969, no. 539.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Taino,” In Britannica concise encyclopedia. Chicago, IL: Britannica Digital Learning, 2017. Retrieved from http://0-search.credoreference.com.dewey2.library.denison.edu/content/entry/ebconcise/taino/0?institutionId=4607