Oxtotitlán
Cueva de Oxtotitlán | |
enthroned ruler wearing what has been identified as an owl costume (Mural 1 artist rendition) | |
| Location | Chilapa de Álvarez, Guerrero |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 17°47′N 98°57′W / 17.783°N 98.950°W |
| Type | rock shelter |
| History | |
| Periods | Mesoamerican Preclassical, Approx. 900 years BCE |
| Cultures | Olmec |
Oxtotitlán is a natural rock shelter and archaeological site in Chilapa de Álvarez, Mexican state of Guerrero that contains murals linked to the Olmec motifs and iconography. Along with the nearby Juxtlahuaca cave, the Oxtotitlán rock paintings represent the "earliest sophisticated painted art known in Mesoamerica", thus far. Unlike Juxtlahuaca, however, the Oxtotitlán paintings are not deep in a cave system but rather occupy two shallow grottos on a cliff face.
The paintings have been variously dated to perhaps 900 years BCE. It is not known what group or society painted them. It is also not known how Olmec-influenced art came to be painted hundreds of kilometers (or miles) from the Olmec heartland, although caves are prominent on many Olmec-style monuments, including La Venta Altars 4 and 5.