Apollo Advent Calendar: Day 5

Apollo is counting down to Christmas by celebrating some of the greatest acquisitions, gifts and bequests of 2013. We’ll take a closer look each day at one of the outstanding objects, works of art or collections shortlisted for the Apollo Awards Acquisition of the Year.

Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth
Two censer stands, c. 690–720
Maya, late Classic period (600–900)
Acquired by the Kimbell Art Foundation

Ceramic censer stands (incensarios) such as this would have supported brazier bowls for burning incense in Maya ceremonies. Few of these stands are in US collections, and these two, standing at nearly four feet tall apiece, are in exceptional condition with traces of blue, red and white pigment from the original decoration still visible. The totem pole-like design represents the World Tree, which the Mayans believed to be the centre of the universe, with roots deep in the earth and branches supporting the heavens. They were probably made by the same artist, though not necessarily as a pair, and their high quality suggests they originated in the powerful Maya city-state of Palenque.