jaguar cult

…usually was a hybrid between jaguar and human infant, often crying or snarling with open mouth. This “were-jaguar” is the hallmark of Olmec art, and it was the unity of objects in this style that first suggested to scholars that they were dealing with a new and previously unknown civilization.…

…old men often embellished with jaguar emblems, the jaguar being associated with the night and the nether regions.

…are referred to as “were-jaguars” because the image of this mythological or quasi-symbolic supernatural being is a humanoid type thought by many to combine human aspects with the jaguar concept.

…towns and settlements, so the jaguar probably represents the control of society as well as of nature. Jaguars are carved on axes, pots, and human likenesses; men wear jaguar skins; and human faces are depicted with jaguar-like mouths.