Who is this strange fellow on the tray?

July 15, 2005 12:01 PM

Help me identify a weird graphic from a blurry image?

I know this is a long shot, and this photo is the best I can do, as the image is printed in gold on a brown glass tray, very hard to light. This is on a tray about 6 by 9 inches. The image is a man-like form, half solid gold and half outline. In his right hand he holds what looks like a stylized sun, in the left I'm not sure - it sort of looks like a tree stump that's kind of dripping down. He has an insignia in the middle of his chest which consists of concentric circles with a sort of spout at the top right and lower left. Dashed lines project from these "spouts." Finally, There is a lightning bolt going across his chest. The image is about 2 inches high. I know it's weird and the picture is a nominal help, but it's just so damn enigmatic I'm hoping that odd chance will bring someone who can identify the source of this strange image out. The tray was bought used, no idea of origin, and there are no other marks or writing of any kind on it.

posted by nanojath to media & arts (16 comments total)

Perseus with the severed head of Medusa ? Just a wild guess... google images
posted by swordfishtrombones at 12:23 PM on July 15, 2005

Is he wearing a hood, like an executioner? Hard to tell.
posted by iconomy at 12:29 PM on July 15, 2005

Or perhaps it's teenage Donny Osmond defeats Lowrider magazine cover model, via swordfishtrombones' google search.
posted by tiny purple fishes at 12:44 PM on July 15, 2005

Yeah, I would have guessed Perseus with the head of Medusa. Hard to tell, though.
posted by languagehat at 12:49 PM on July 15, 2005

The X-Cutioner?
posted by cloeburner at 12:58 PM on July 15, 2005

Looks like an advertising character for a local electric company to me. Or perhaps it's from a Worlds Fair and is intended to convey the "Spirit of Energy" or somesuch. Any other marks on the tray?
posted by Morrigan at 1:55 PM on July 15, 2005

I don't see a tree stump at all. Looks like a couple of children sitting on his arm.
posted by ldenneau at 2:15 PM on July 15, 2005

Some of the symbolism strikes me as ancient (Aztec, Mayan, etc) but the style of the man himself is very modern. I don't think it's a representation of any ancient beings, it's more likely what Morrigan suggests. Sorry I don't know any more.
posted by knave at 2:26 PM on July 15, 2005

For me the style (and not the content) is remiscent of an ancient southern English chalk hill figure known as Long Man of Wilmington.
posted by carter at 2:43 PM on July 15, 2005

Any chance you could pop that tray in a scanner? Can't tell much from that picture.
posted by bricoleur at 2:47 PM on July 15, 2005

I tried to scan it but it just wouldn't work - something about the way it reflects, despite my best effort my scanner just won't read it. Nothing else on it but the picture, nothing printed on or molded on the glass. It's probably a lost cause. My dim hope was that someone might simply be conversant with the image. Its definitely not Perseus. My thoughts have been similar to Morrigan's. Some amusing suggestions though. Probably destined to be one of them mysteries.
posted by nanojath at 3:53 PM on July 15, 2005

It looks to me like it's based on the Nazca Lines, but it is not a real one as far as I can tell, which ain't far.
posted by wsg at 10:31 PM on July 15, 2005

It might be David holding Goliath's head.
posted by shoos at 11:42 PM on July 15, 2005

Could you trace or sketch the distinctive parts (tree stump, spouts, sunburst) and post a scan or photo? Maybe something in the details will help.
Also, there appears to be something like a sickle in the upper right arc of the sunburst - is that in the original or just the photo?
posted by Zetetics at 9:01 AM on July 16, 2005

It reminds me of the type of art I saw when I toured the electric company as a kid.
posted by drezdn at 10:04 AM on July 16, 2005

It kind of looks like some of the art deco art at Rockefeller Center (click on History aththe bottom, then Art)
posted by Frank Grimes at 1:52 PM on July 16, 2005