Zemí cohoba stand

This striking figure once served as a crucial component of an extended ritual practice that involved spiritual preparations such as fasting and the ingestion of mind-altering substances. Known as a zemí (or cemí), the object was thought to channel the immaterial, vital force of deities and ancestors. Cohoba, a powder or paste made with hallucinogenic seeds, would be placed on the top of the stand, and participants would inhale the substance through tubes.  

The effects this act are visible in the zemí itself: the figure appears to have the emaciated look of someone who had been fasting, and its large watering eyes, gnashing teeth, and erect phallus are associated with consuming cohoba.