Pre-Columbian, South Coast Peru, Nazca, ca. 3rd to 7th century CE. A beautiful, hand-built polychrome vessel with a rounded base, gently sloping walls, and a pair of slender cylindrical spouts with a short stirrup-style handle arching in-between. The highly-burnished vessel is decorated with solid beige and black slip on the base and a deep red slip ground along the upper half. Each hemisphere of the body displays a series of four intricate hummingbirds surrounding an abstract, flower-like form with four sinuous tendrils and a central black-and-red circle. An intriguing example from ancient Peru! Lucite display stand for photography purposes only. Size: 5.25" W x 5.875" H (13.3 cm x 14.9 cm).

Artwork from the Peruvian Nazca culture has been dominated by representations of avian forms, especially hummingbirds. Peru is home to 127 different known species of hummingbirds, so their influence on ancient Mesoamerican artwork comes as no surprise. What people during this time period thought of the avian creatures, however, is not clear - in Mesoamerica, they were associated with war and seen as ferocious, while in the Amazon they were associated with medicine because of their long, probing beaks being similar to the process by which "spirit darts" were taken from the sick and wounded.

Provenance: ex-private Southern California, USA collection, acquired over 20 years ago

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#138103

Surface wear and abrasions commensurate with age, small pitting marks on body, spouts, and handle, chips and nicks to spouts, handle, and upper body, with fading and staining to some areas of pigmentation. Light earthen deposits throughout. Old inventory sticker and sticker adhesive on base.