Pre-Columbian, Peru, Chancay culture, ca. 1000 to 1470 CE. This is a really fine polychrome olla in the form of an egg-shaped figure of indeterminate sex. What makes this figure particularly notable is the earthy red slip applied to the lower part of the body - many of these figures are just cream and black. The figure has wide, staring eyes, what is either a beard or a toothy grin, a round headdress with three-dimensional elements, and small arms, hands, legs, and feet that are slightly raised from the body of the vessel. The hands hold a small kero (ceremonial cup). The figure also has large earrings and marks on the face that may represent tattooing or scarification. Pottery from the Chancay culture is often found in the cemeteries of the Ancon and Chancay valleys; the Chancay produced large quantities of funerary ceramics in specialized workshops. These figures are often placed in male and female pairs, perhaps as guardians of tombs. Size: 9.25" W x 15.5" H (23.5 cm x 39.4 cm)

Provenance: Ex-private Scollard collection, acquired before 1990

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#114877

Intact with paint very clear -- beautiful condition for an often broken piece!