Peru

Peru, Chavin Cupisnique Style Stirrup spout Vessel Decorated with a Harpy Eagle.

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Middle Phase, North Coast, circa 1200-800BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 8"

Price Upon Request

n2067

Peru, Miniature Tunic with Fish Appliques

This rare small tunic was made for a child or perhaps a doll. The silver fish are individually crafted - cutout with repousse details. The fish are attached with the original thread, through holes in the fish, and are applied to both the front and back of the tunic. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York possesses a similar miniature tunic, pair of shoes, and coca bag, all made in the same style using textiles with square-shaped silver appliques. These items, along with a larger textile, are illustrated in the Textile Museum's publication Costumes and Featherwork of the Lords of Chimor, figs. 148, 167,168.

Period: Peru, Chimu, Central Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Width: 7" x Length: 13 1/2"

$2,500

91201A

Peru, Blackware Vessel in The Form of a Bonito

This fish is identifiable as a bonito by its pointed mouth and teeth. In the same family as tuna, but smaller, the bonito is one of the most abundant fish in north coastal Peru.

Period: Peru, Lambayeque, North Coast, c. AD 500 - 1100

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Length: 8" x Height: 8 1/4"

$1,500

n2016

Peru, Stirrup Spout Vessel Depicting a Scallop

This elegant vessel is modeled after the Argopectin purpuratus (the Peruvian calico scallop). It is decorated with swirling painted stripes in brown slip on a cream ground and is a typical example of Moche realism. During El Niño events, bivalves proliferate along the coast; scallops are the most abundant species. The bivalves, in turn, attract octopi, which feed almost exclusively on these mollusks. Octopi are a frequent theme in Moche art. A similar example of a stirrup spout vessel in the form of a bivalve shell is illustrated in The Spirit of Ancient Peru: Treasures from the Museo Arqueologico Rafael Larco Herrera, edited by Kathleen Berrin (1997: fig. 41).

Period: Peru, Moche II, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 350

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 7"

Price Upon Request

95065

Peru, Inca Gold Pin Topped with Bird Perched on Corn Cob

Gold from the Inca period is rare as most has been melted down by the Conquistadores. These pins are mostly found made of silver and were used to pin a garment closed. What appears to be a simple pin is complicated in its manufacture. The pin with the corn cob is cast. The bird is made of a separate stamped sheet, designed head to head, bent, and soldered to itself. The bird was then fitted over the top to appear as one piece. Private Florida collection, prior to 1980. A similar piece appears in "Kunst Und Kultur von Peru" (Art and Culture of Peru) by Max Schmidt, p.396.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length: 5" Weight: 4.7 grams

Price Upon Request

MM625

Peru, 25 Proto-Nasca Knitted Miniature Faces in Blue, Green, Pink, Red and Yellow

The faces were from a fancy fringe, made using the cross-loop needle stitch. Each face has two or more colors. They may have represented trophy heads, or perhaps were used as totems guard against evil spirits. Houston private collection, prior to 1980.

Period: Peru, Proto-Nasca, South Coast, c. 100 BC - AD 200

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Mounted in a shadow Box 10" x 11"

$1,500

p2039

Peru, 3 Inca Slings

These three slings double as tethers and were used to restrain llamas by attaching them through a hole in the ear. Llamas were herded by the Incas and were the primary source of cargo transport in the Andes. A llama could carry up to ninety pounds of cargo on its back.

Period: Peru, Inca, South Coast, c. AD 1200 - 532

Media: Textile

Dimensions: mounted dimensions: H. 36 x L. 17 in.

$3,000

89505A

Peru, 3 Pairs of Early Chancay Fertility Figures

These are rare and unusual Chancay figurines with painted surfaces in brick, beige and brown umber. The strong brown umber painted lines suggest an early Chancay phase with Wari influence. The figurines are wearing costumes that suggest important status, particularly the male figures, which each have a crown. The women wear braided hairstyles. The genitalia are exposed in enhanced proportions, likely part of a fertility symbolism related to agricultural production.

Period: Peru, Chancay,/Huari Central Coast, circa AD 900-1100

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height Males c.10" Height of Females c.9"

Price Upon Request

M9014Hb

Peru, A Rare Recuay Gilt Scepter

This scepter is very rare with an unusual motif of three animals standing on three flayed feline skins. The central animal is a deer flanked by an unknown four-legged animal. The shaft of the scepter has two channels attached by a series of triangular soldered stock. Each channel has a suspension hole towards the top. This scepter must have belonged to a high status individual as its manufacture is very elaborate and technically sophisticated. Only one other known similar Recuay scepter is illustrated in Kultur Von Peru by Max Schmidt, pg. 392. The accompanying two tupus with decorated tops (longer and shorter) each have a different motif.

The longer tupu is decorated with a band of four stooping animals in low relief, each with a serpent emanating from its head. The inside of the the longer tupu’s upper cup is decorated with a frowning face, perhaps a mask. This is one of the largest known intact tupus. The smaller tupu has a rich gilt surface and is decorated with a band of two face masks. Inside the upper cup of the small tupu is the head of the same animal flanking the deer on the scepter. Both tupus have finials that are decorated with both an outside band and an inside head. The larger one has a band of 3 double headed serpents with a fox head inside. The smaller one has a band of a double-headed arched feline and a face inside.

Four tupus excavated at Pashash, the earliest known Recuay site, are illustrated in The Art and Archaeology of PSAHASH by Terence Grieder, figs. 114-117, and fig. 7. These tupus were originally sold by Alan Lapiner in the early 1970s along with a classic Recuay vessel of a lord flanked by arched felines on each side.

Period: Peru, Recuay, North Highlands, c. 300 BC - AD 700

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Scepter Length 9" x Width 3"
Longer Tupu Length 8 ½ x diameter 1 ½”
Shorter tupu: Length: 7 ½” x diameter 1"

Price Upon Request

M3023

Peru, Cajamarca Low Orangeware Bowls with Coiled Serpent

This bowl has an orange and white spotted coiled serpent motif and a footed base. The Cajamarca culture has a long role in Peruvian pre-history going back to Chavin times until 1532 when the Inca king Atahualpa was killed by Pizarro. Today there still exists a beautiful cut stone "Inca Bath" of warm mineral water that was enjoyed by Inca nobility. A similar style of ancient plate from Cajamarca is in the Museum at Cajamarca. The orange and white slip decoration demonstrates the high artistic control that the Cajamarca artisans had over the medium. A great deal of control over the firing process was required to prevent the orange slip from turning brown

Period: Peru, Cajamarca, North Highlands, c. AD 1000 - 1400

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Diameter: 10 inches.

Price Upon Request

97111a

Peru, Central Coast Peruvian Wood Ear Spools

Probably late Huari or early Chancay, these light balsa wood ear spool carved in three sections, depicting a face, body and back. The design is cut out, with four rows of birds in profile – generally typical of Chancay or Chimu art. No glue or tree resin was used to keep the three sections together, rather they are carved perfectly to have a precise fit. Ear spools were used in the ancient Andes to display status and rank. Ex. Daniel Rifkin, acquired in New York prior to 1980.

Period: Peru, Wari, Central Coast, c. AD 650 - 1100

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Diameter: 3" x Depth: 4 1/2"

Price Upon Request

M4011

Peru, Chancay Double-Chambered Whistling Vessel with Animal Impersonator

The Chancay people were known for their ceramic workshops, where series of similar items were produced in groups. This bridge-spout vessel has two chambers and is painted with alternating straight and wavy lines. The figure sitting atop the vessel is an Animal Impersonator of a monkey. “Animal Impersonator” is a term used by Pre-Colombian scholars to refer to a shaman who dresses as a certain animal to embody the mythological characteristics associated with that animal. Monkeys, who dwell at the top of the forest canopy in the Amazon, are associated with ancestral secrets in Andean mythology. This shaman has a hairstyle arranged in two coils to resemble monkey ears, as well as white ear spools. He is hunched over and holds a weaving in his arms.
This vessel may have been used to pour a psychoactive brew as part of a shamanic rite. When brew was poured, the air moved from one chamber to the other, creating a whistling sound. The tone of the whistle was created by the specific shape of the resonance cavity. Whistling sounds would have enhanced the shamanic ritual. According to author Daniel K. Stat’s article Ancient Sounds: The Whistling Vessels of Peru, “the psycho-acoustical effects appear to be created by low frequencies or difference tones, or possibly the interaction of harmonic principles, which are produced when several vessels from a specific culture are played simultaneously.”
This vessel would also have been intended for its owner for use in the afterlife.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. 900 - 1300

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 10 1/2" x Width: 7"

$1,400

n9047

Peru, Chancay Fringed Tapestry Border with Cats and Birds

This was likely the border of a tunic and was made as two loom widths sewn together with an additional fringe sewn horizontally. The design of cats and birds alternating in angled bands is bordered above and below with rows of additional small birds. It is unusual to see such red and gold highlights dyed on cotton.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 1100 - 1430

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Width: 37" Height: 9"

$2,200

94277

Peru, Chancay House with Seated Man in Two Room Interior

This ceramic piece represents the interior of a house. The inside is divided into two alcoves. One alcove is enclosed on three sides, with a crosshatch pattern on the exterior, and the other is open to expose a seated man facing outward. He sits with an open vessel in front of him. The two outside walls are higher than the ones inside.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 1100 - 1430

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Length, 7 2/8 in, width 4 12/16 in, height 4 in.

Price Upon Request

92237

Peru, Chancay Miniature Bone Flute with Incised Circles and Four Holes

A flute made of animal bone decorated with over 175 circles with dots, likely representing the spots of the jaguar. There are two suspension small suspension holes on the opposite side. Similar bone flutes are represented in MUSIC OF ELDORADO by Dale A. Olsen pg.39 There have not been any studies so far to determine the symbols of the circles. Acquired in 1992 from Robert Kommer, Washing State.

Period: Peru, Central Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Bone

Dimensions: Length: 3 1/2"

$475

92092

Peru, Chancay Painted Cotton Panel with Four Abstract Figures and Symbols

The cotton panel is painted in blue, tan and orange. The drawing can be interpreted as 3 woven panels or tunics with fringes, each decorated with different abstract designs. On each side of the central panel are two abstract creatures with curly tails on an orange ground.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 900 - 1500

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 46" x Width: 23"

$7,500

n6056h

Peru, Chancay stamped decorated woven panel

The decoration is a combination of resist dying and then stamped design. There are over 7 different motifs all arranged in diagonal patterns.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 1100 - 1430

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 15'(180") x Width: 4'(48")

$15,000

N2027

Peru, Chancay Tan Gauze Witch's Vail with a Complex Pattern of Cat Faces

Tan cotton complex gauze decorated with a lace-like pattern of cat faces in alternating orientations. Witches’ vails are often seen on Chancay dolls. This example has tightly spaced cat faces, making the gauze very dense and complex.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 1100 - 1430

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Height 38" x Width 32"

$3,350

94277A

Peru, Chancay Weaver's Basket with Implements

This is a large basket, made of woven rush and contains 40 spindle whorls with different color arrangements. 18 with yellow and orange notched ceramic whorls, 8 with white, yellow and orange whorls, and 8 with spun cotton thread. There are 2 whorls with circles and 4 with polka dot designs. There are 2 copper needles, cotton samples, and a bone flute.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, circa AD1100- 430

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 16" x Width 5" x Height 3 1/2"

Condition: Very good, as found with the original contents

Price Upon Request

N1043

Peru, Chavin Carved Bone Spatula with Incised Morphed Faces

The bone is highly polished all over. The primary figure is a monster with a large mouth, snarly nose, and shell inlaid eye on each side. The body is carved with abstracted motifs. On the lower front side is a profile of the monster's head with a large mouth opening into the bone's joint. A similar example is illustrated in THE INKA EMPIRE AND ITS ANDEAN ORIGINS- pl.30 and is also on exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, NY.

Period: Peru, Chavin, Cupisnique, Late Phase, North Coast, c. 700 - 400 BC

Media: Bone

Dimensions: Length: 6 1/4" x Wifth at shoulder 1 1/4"

$6,000

94149

Peru, Chavin carved wood effigy of a shaman

Carved wooden effigy of a standing shaman holding a flute or serpent in front. The shaman has puckered lips as if he is whistling and appears in a trance like state. He is wearing a headdress, v neck tunic and belt with two long devices hanging down along the outside of each leg. On the back of the belt is a "U" shaped device of unknown use. From the top of the head emeniates a bone tube which has been broken. A similar shaman's face is illustrated in PRECOLUMBIAN ART OF SOUTH AMERICA by Alan Lapiner fig. 13. Wooden effigy figures are extremely rare and do not survive well. The left leg was broken off and re-attached and the evidence of age was apparent.

Period: Late Chavin, North coast Peru 700-400 B.C.

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height 9.1/2"

Price Upon Request

95057

Peru, Chavin Ceramic Depicting a Recumbant Jaguar With San Pedro Cactus

On each side of the vessel there is a jaguar lying outside of a structure which is possibly a cave or a temple. A San Pedro Cactus is aside a Strombus shell; both have strong symbolic meaning for the Chavin feline cult. As the largest and the most -feared terrestrial carnivore in the Amazon, the jaguar serves as a natural symbol of raw aggression. Chavin shamans respected the jaguar for its nocturnal hunting skills and its ability to swim and climb into the forest, ruling earth, water and sky as their domain. Literary references of the same motif appear in The British Museum, The American Museum of Natural History, The Munson-Proctor Institute in Utica, and The Larco Herrera Collection at the Museo Nacional de Antropologia y Arqueologia in Lima.

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Middle Phase, North Coast, circa 1200-800BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 10 3/4"

Price Upon Request

n2059

Peru, Chavin Cupisnique Style of a San Pedro Cactus

Vessel with long body, long spout, and concentric circular ornaments. Similar examples to be found in "Chavin Perus Geheimnisvoller Anden-Tempel" on page 285, and 359. Vessels like these were not usually made to destroy but to serve as vehicles for transporting the Chavin Cult. The surface area is highly burnished and original. The vessel is large for its type.

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Middle Phase, North Coast, circa 1200-800BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 13"

Price Upon Request

n2058

Peru, Chavin Gold Crown With Embossed Design

Chavin artists hammered gold sheets over wooden molds to make crowns and pectorals for the ruling elite. This crown was cut down and repaired in antiquity, but it originally had two profile faces on the sides and two frontal images of the feline deity so often seen in Chavin art. A cuff from the same grave lot is on display at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts with faces separated by diagonal designs. This crown is published in Jose Antonio Lavalle "Oro Del Antiguo Peru" (1992: pl. 10). Samuel K. Lothrop was the first scholar to analyze gold crowns and plaques that came from two tomb lots in Chongoyape, "Gold Artifacts of Chavin Style" (American Antiquity 1951, 3: 226 - 240). His work and other tomb finds are reviewed by Richar L. Burger in "Chavin and The Origins of Andean Civilization" (1992: 204 - 206) A number of crowns similar to this one are known to have come from these tombs, which also yielded gold cuffs, ear spools, nose pendants, chest plaques and tweezers. Examined and approved by Robert Sonin and Henri Reichlin in 1976. Ex-collection Marcel Ebnother, Switzerland.

Period: Peru, Chavin, North Coast Peru, Late Initial Period, circa 1200-200BC

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length 11. 1/2" x Height 2"

Price Upon Request

M6075

Peru, Chavin Gold Miniature Ornament

This Chavin gold ornament was formed of braided gold wire in a horseshoe shape. Gold was revered in the ancient Andes and this ornament would have been worn by a high-status individual.

Period: Peru, Chavin, Late phase, North Coast, c. 600 - 400 BC

Media: Metal

Dimensions: H: 6/8"

$750

90088

Peru, Chavin Gold Spiral Nose Ring with Two Twisted Wires and Two Dangles

This wire nose ring was made of one hammered sheet of gold, folded on itself, and cut. The ornament was hammered and coiled with the original suspended dangles.

Period: Peru, Chavin, North Coast, c. 1500 - 400 BC

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height:1 1/4" Weight: 4.8 grams

$2,100

94222

Peru, Chavin Pair of Gold Ear Ornaments and a Gold Nose Ornament with double chevron

The pair of gold ornaments, each with a double headed serpent with cut-out facial details, suspended by a twisted wire loop, and a suspension plaque dangleA gold nose ornament with cutout design and a central suspension plaque. The single nose ornament has a cut-out design sign in an abstract avian face or that of opposing chevrons, suspended by a twisted gold wire loop. pl. 15.

Period: Peru circa 500-300AD

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Widths 1 1/2 inches each; Width 1 3/4 inches

Price Upon Request

94157

Peru, Chavin pair of Turquoise Plaques with Profile Faces

These faces could be trophy heads. There are two small drill holes center arranged vertically. It’s quite rare to find carved turquoise when most are made of shell. These may have been use as pendants to a textile. There is an abundance of manganese patina on the front.

Period: Peru, Chavin, Middle Phase, c. 1000 - 700 BC

Media: Stone

Dimensions: Height: 1 1/2" x Width 1 3/4"

$2,900

98046

Peru, Chavin Rock Quartz Crystal 24" Necklace

Bi-conically drilled rock quartz crystal necklace with traces of cinnabar. The beads are graduated in size from approximately 9.22 mm to 11.17 mm. They were purchased between 1975 and 1985.

Period: Peru, Chavin, North Coast, circa 400-500BC

Media: Stone

Dimensions: Length: 24" inches

Price Upon Request

94049

Peru, Chavin Stirrup Spout Portrait Vessel with Red Face and White Tears

There are few published, authenticated, Chavin ceramic portrait heads and this is the only known one of its kind with post -fire red and white pigment. The face has an unusually sensitive expression and delicately incised black and white tears that radiate outwards. There is a similar Chavin portrait vessel in the Linden Museum- Stuttgardt. Another Chavin portrait in the Larco collection and illustrated in THE SPIRIT OF ANCIENT PERU (pg.81) also has similar facial features: small ears, slanted eyes, small nose and thin lips - but in addition also has wrinkles. Author Richard Burger identifies this portrait as an elderly person. It is possible that the red-faced portrait is also a depiction of the same person that the Cupisnique people may have revered.

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Late Phase, North Coast, circa 700-400BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 12 3/8" x Width 8"

Price Upon Request

n2108

Peru, Chavin Stirrup Spout Vessel

This is an early and characteristic vessel from Cupisnique in the north coast of Peru, including the spiral design and comb texturing. A similar one is illustated in Donnan, "Ceramics of Ancient Peru" (1992: 29).

Period: Peru, Chavin, Cupisnique - North Coast of Peru, 1400-500 BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 9"

Price Upon Request

M5044

Peru, Chavin Stirrup Spout Vessel in the Form of a House

An unusual architectural motif of a round house which could have been a temple or ceremonial center. Round stone burial towers are found in the early Tiwanaku culture. This may have been what they were seeing and influenced their designs in Boliva.

Period: Chavin, North Coast Peru, c. 700-400 B.C.

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: H. 9 in.

$7,500

92082

Peru, Chavin Stirrup Spout Vessel in the Form of an Owl's Head

Owls were revered by Peruvians because of their 180-degree vision, silent flight, and strong claws. Owls were often seen as magical and it was believed that they could transform into shamans. A similar vessel is illustrated in CERAMICS OF ANCIENT PERU by Christopher Donnan in plate 33 on page 28. Ex-collection Dr. Edmund Bourke, Yonkers, NY, prior to 1980s.

Period: Peru, Chavin, Cupisnique, Late Phase, North Coast, c.900 - 200BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 91/2" x Diameter at base: 5 1/2"

$6,750

p2015

Peru, Chavin Stirrup Spout Vessel in the form of the Pijuayo Fruit

This Chavin Stirrup Spout Vessel has been shaped to mimic a ripe branch of Pijuayo (Peach Palm) fruits. Each individual fruit is red and semi-circular. It was mainly eaten after boiling in salt water for two hours, and has the taste and texture of a chestnut. Ancient Peruvians placed high value on the fruits and vegetables that surrounded them. To express this admiration of the transcendence that the plants in their daily life had, they often made works of art in tribute to them and the gods that made them. Similar fruit inspired vessels to this one are found in "Plantas Alimenticias en el Antiguo Peru" from pages 145 - 160; 1985. The peach palm was especially revered for its hard wood, which was used to carve spears. (The Ethnobotany of Pre-Columbian Peru pg. 28,1961).

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Late Phase, North Coast, circa 700-400BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Length: 10" Height: 9"

Price Upon Request

n2096

Peru, Chavin Tembladera Style Stirrup Spout Brownware Vessel in the form of an Abstract Animal

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Middle Phase, North Coast, circa 1200-800BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 9 1/4"

$8,500

n2056

Peru, Chavin Tembladera Style Stirrup Spout Vessel Decorated with Sea Lion Deity

The animal appears to a splayed sea lion with flippers. The animal deity at the top is in a protective posture, as if birthing or protecting its young. All four sides are decorated with a wave-like element in high relief

Period: Peru, Chavï­n, Cupisnique, Middle Phase, North Coast, circa 1200-800BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 9 1/4"

Price Upon Request

n2055

Peru, Chimu Carved Crayfish and Bird Pendants Carved from Spondylus Shells

The pendant on the left depicts a crayfish, while the one on the right represents a marine bird. Crayfish are found in the fresh water rivers along the Peruvian coast. Both pendants have suspension holes for attachment to a bracelet or necklace. Best seen from above, the bird has protruding eyes and a long tail. Both items are the types of Spondylus artifacts that are found on Peruvian North Coast Capa Pacha (child sacrifice ceremony). This is in discussed in PYRAMIDS OF TUCUME- The quest frof the Peru's Forgotten City by Thor Hyerdahl and Daniel Sandweisspg,106-112

Period: Peru, Late Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 1100-1530

Media: Shell

Dimensions: Crayfish Length: 1 3/8"
Bird Length: 1 1/2"

$1,250

N7002

Peru, Chimu Carved Miniature Bone Standing Figure for a Top to a Container

This figurine wears a tunic and a hat showing his bangs. The facial features are well sculptured with the septum pierced for a nose ornament. He is wearing a tunic which once had triangular inlays with hand. The figure stands on top of a post suggesting that it was originally used as a top to a lime container. The figure is delicately carved, with precise details all around.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Bone

Dimensions: Length" 1 1/2 ".

$950

92254

Peru, Chimú Gold 29" Necklace of Large Hollow Beads

The Chimú inherited a taste for hollow gold bead necklaces from their Moche predecessors. In both cultures, each bead was cast and hammered in two halves that were then joined together by soldering. In the Chimú technique, the edges of the two halves were nested together. These beads are extremely light with a greater percentage of silver than gold. They used depletion gilding to bring the gold to the surface by using of heats and salts. This allowed the Chimu to make the gold available for a large and growing ruling class. Private Florida collection prior to 1980.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Necklace Length: 29"; largest bead 2 1/4" diameter - smallest 1 1/2"

$27,000

M7991

Peru, Chimu Gold Cuff with 3 bands of 4 Repousse Stars Each

The cuff has two tie holes. A cuff with a similar star design is illustrated in the Gold Museum of Peru page 127. Ex- collection, Camilla Dietz Bergeron, N.Y.

Period: Peru, Chimu, Early Phase, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1100

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height 4 1/2" Weight: 65.5 grams

$10,000

N2064

Peru, Chimu Lost Wax Cast Bronze Finial with Four Warriors

Metal objects that are cast with rings or bells that move to make a sound are known as idiophones. Each warrior wears a loincloth and holds a club in one hand and a shield in the other. Each of the loops around the shaft holds a bell, which when moved, clanks against the shaft.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 2 3/4" x Width: 3:

$5,500

P1038

Peru, Chimú Necklace of Mother of Pearl on Original Cotton Line

There are 50 matched mother-of-pearl elements each with a single suspension hole starting at the top and exiting from the side and sewn on a continuous strand around a double cotton cord. Similar mother-of-pearl tab shaped beads are on a pectoral in the American Museum of Natural History and illustrated in THE INKA EMPIRE AND ITS ANDEAN ORIGINS by Craig Morris, pl 131.

$2,800

m7148

Peru, Chimu Shell Turtle Pendant

This turtle head and carapace have inlays of turquoise and mother of pearl. This is an unusually large shell, carved with double imagery. A human figure appears on the carapace when the pendant is vertical. When horizontal, the shell appears as a turtle, with a small head at the top, and tail and rear flippers at the bottom. From a Private New York collector prior to 1980's. Published in Ocean Fishing in Pre-Columbian Chile and Peru, plate 60.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, circa AD900-1350

Media: Shell

Dimensions: Height: 3" inches

Condition: As found with original inlays.

$2,900

M8027

Peru, Chimu silver balance with 2 warriors

A rare Chimu silver balance beam decorated with two bag carrying individuals followed by a perched bird. This depiction could explain how the balance beams were used by exchanging feathers of different birds of equal weight. Trade across long distances of exotic materials was a key element in the ancient economy. The balance beam is made of both cast and soldered elements. It is true soldered filigree work of curls decorating the edge. The individuals and birds were cast. It is also extremely rare to find balance beams in silver, as most of them are of wood or bone. There is a single suspension hole in the top bar center and one hole for a net on each side of the lower bar.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, circa 900 - 1350 AD

Media: Metal

Dimensions: H: 2" W:3.5"

$4,500

98361

Peru, Chimu Silver Tupu with Ornate Rattle

Tupu pins were used by high status individuals to fasten their garments. The level of fine detail and craftsmanship indicates that this silver tupu would have belonged to an extremely important person. The shaft is completely incised with a repeating diamond motif. The rattle at the top is constructed with two incised discs, soldered to a curved band. Inside is a delicate suspended cylinder. This rare tupu is in good condition and has been professionally cleaned and stabilized.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length:10" x Weight: 25 grams

$2,650

MM615

Peru, Chimu Tapestry Panel with 18 Cacti

The panel is arranged with three rows of cacti, probably the San Pedro cactus species. The San Pedro is also eaten as psychoactive fruit and is shaped like a star or flower when sliced. This panel illustrates three rows of plants, each with a bird eating the fruit. The rows of cacti are bordered by double rows of stylized crowned Chimu crowned.
This panel was cut from a larger weaving. The fringe is authentic, coming from the original weaving, but was re-attached. The panel is mounted in a Plexiglas box. The framer used an adhesive to attach the weaving to the ivory cotton ground; it should not be removed from the stretcher.
Formerly in a New York private collection prior to 1979.

Period: Peru, Chimu, Central Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Height: 22" x Width: 23"

$3,250

n9042

Peru, Chimu Tapestry Panel with 18 Ducks in Profile

This tapestry features 18 ducks in profile, and arranged in three rows, each oriented in the same direction. Each duck has one wing stylized in the shape of a single feather and the other behind its head. There is delicate detailing in the feet and tail feathers. The panel is mounted in a Plexiglas box. The framer used an adhesive to attach the weaving to the ivory cotton ground; it should not be removed from the stretcher.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Height: 13" x Width 31"

Price Upon Request

n9041

Peru, Chimu Tapestry Shirt with Pelican Narrative

This is a complete tapestry woven shirt with sleeves constructed of cotton warps and camelid wefts in red, brown, olive and white on an ochre ground. It depicts a mythical marine narrative with two pelicans carrying a litter bearing a trophy head in the form of a skate with a face. Litters were considered a prestigious mode of transportation on the North coast. The presence of this image within the narrative reinforces the importance of the individual who wore this shirt. There is a pelican with a crescent headdress on top of each litter. Each of the four panels displays the same scene in reverse colors. This shirt is illustrated in Rowe, Ann, "Costumes and Featherwork of the Lords of Chimor" published by The Textile Museum, 1984, fig 103. Formally in the collection of the Southwest Museum in California.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, c. AD 900 - 1350

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Width 47-1/2" x Length 19-1/2"

Price Upon Request

96127

Peru, Chimú Wood Earspool with Inlaid Shell Deity

The Chimú were renowned for their sophisticated craftsmanship. This North coast Chimú earspool features a male ruler wearing an elaborate semi-circular headdress and holding a scepter in each hand, portraying power. The earspool is particularly large and decorated with cut inlays of varying shades of spondylus and mother-of- pearl shells. Highlights of turquoise and purple shells embellish the design. The mosaic is laid out of a thin layer of a dark resin material set on a circular wood back, which is attached to a tapering wood shaft. The outer edge of the mosaic is adorned with series of wave motifs, connecting representing the Chimú marine environment. The larger ear ornaments were worn by high-ranking personage. The more important the person, the larger the ear pool. This earspool likely belonged to a male nobleman with a high degree of power and authority. A very similar ear ornament is illustrated on the front cover of Alt-Peru: Auf den Spuren der Zivilisation (Old Peru: On the Trail of Civilization), published in 1986 by the Roemer Museum in Vienna.

Media: Shell

$15,000

p4200

Peru, Chimu Wood Mirror Back depicting a lord

A large and well carved wood mirror back with a dignitary in full regaila wearing a nose ring and a large crescent shaped headdress. His face is also decorated with a tattoo. There is original cotton string bound to the handle. The pyrite mirror in the back is ancient but not original to the piece. A similar elaborate mirror back from the Chimu is illustrated in Alan Lapiner, "Pre-Columbian Art of South America" (1976: #625) That particular mirror was sold at Sotheby's auction May 19, 1993 for $30,000. My mirror was examined by Robert Sonin for authenticity May 25, 2006 Photo roll-out #3305 and #3306.

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast, circa AD900-1350

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height 11"

Price Upon Request

98270

Peru, Chimu/Inca Cast Silver Lime Spoon Decorated with a Marine Bird holding a fish in its mouth

Lime spoons were usually tied to a coca leaf pouches, and were used to add lime (calcium) to a wad of coca leaves, which would be held inside the mouth, close to the cheek. The lime would help transmit the coca alkaloids into the blood stream and amplify the effect of the drug.

Period: Peru, Inca, North Coast, c. AD 1350 - 1500

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length: 2 3/8"

$1,450

mm153

Peru, Chimu/Inca Copper Lime Spoon with Long-Billed Bird

An unusually large lime spoon decorated with a cast long-billed marine bird on top. The bird has turquoise beads for eyes. Lime spoons were used to extract powdered lime from containers for participants in coca rituals. The lime (powdered burned limestone or shell) was the catalyst that released the cocaine alkaloids from the coca leaves chewed during these ceremonies. Coca rituals were important to Andean cultures, but were restricted to elite, high-ranking lords. Birds represented souls flying to the otherworld to communicate with the supernatural. For similar examples, see Baessler (1906: pl. 13; Nordenskiold 1921: fig. 19, c; Carcedo de Mufarech 1985: fig. 89; and Schindler 2000: 202 and 203).

Period: Peru, Chimu, North Coast Peru, circa 1100-1350

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 4 3/4"

Condition: Good. The tip of the spoon has been restored.

Price Upon Request

95102

Peru, Club with Six-pointed Stone Mace

This wood handled club is decorated with a colorful alpaca band and topped by a six-pointed stone mace. The mace is secured to the shaft with a bronze needle and a colorful fur-like band. Clubs were favored in the Andes because the Andeans utilized a clobbering form of fighting and hunting as opposed to hunters in Europe, who preferred a piercing technique with hardened metals. There is an example illustrated on a Moche painted ceramic that depicts a deer hunt, in which hunters are using both clubs and darts. The illustration appears in "MOCHE: ART OF PERU" by Christopher Donnan, fig. 263.

Period: Peru, Ica/Chincha, South Coast, circa AD1000-1450

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Length: 16" Diameter of Macehead: 5"

Price Upon Request

n2046

Peru, Colonial Kero in the Form of a Feline Head

Originally the Inca used these carved vessels for ceremonial and festive occasions. This tradition lasted through the late 18th Century. Shaped keros were introduced in the Colonial period and their design is limited to 3 specific types of animal motifs: alpaca, llama, feline. They were also made to resemble Inca lords. Keros were made in pairs; and the pair to this Kero is at the Yale Peabody Museum and is illustrated in “Machu Picchu: Unveiling the Mystery of the Incas” on p.212. The vessel may represent an ocelot rather than a jaguar or puma because of the pelage markings, which indicate that it represents a tropical forest feline. The back of the kero is carved and painted with a scene depicting a battle scene between Inca troops and tropical forest warriors known as the Chunchus - the last group that the Inca conquered. The waxy colored inlay pigments, known as mopa-mopa, came from Pasto, Colombia and the carved wood is mainly from the Escallonia genus of shrubs and trees. A similar kero is illustrated in “MACHU PICCHU: Unveiling the Mystery of the Incas,” on pg. 212. This kero was formerly in the collection of Nelson Rockefeller and was sold at Sotheby's on November 5, 1980, in lot 75.

Period: Peru, Colonial, c. Late 17th Century/Early 18th Century

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height: 8 3/4" Widest point on top: 6".

Price Upon Request

n8014

Peru, Colonial Qero with floral motifs in registers

Decorated in five registers with flowers, the pair to this vessel is in the Museo Inka, Universadid Nacional del Cuzco and illustrated in Ochoa et. al. "Qeros: Arte Inka en vasos ceremoniales" (1998: 267). Some were made in pairs, particularly in the Colonial period. Qeros were festive drinking cups that Inca rulers, governors and other state officials used in ceremonies, and they were often gifted from one lord to another. Hans Monheim collection - Aachen Germany since 1950's.

Period: Peru, Inca, Colonial Period, circa AD1600-1800

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height 6 1/2: x Width: 5 " across the top

Price Upon Request

M4044

Peru, Colorful Chancay Gauze with Abstract Faces

This is a very unusual gauze in blue, red, and saffron colors. It is woven in two panels and depicts three bands of large abstract faces, bordered by step clefs. In the opposite orientation the faces appear as skates and frogs.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, c. AD 1100 - 1430

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 27" x Width: 26"

$8,000

n6053h

Peru, Early Chancay wood painted circular headdress ornament. with red sun face

A well painted wood disc depicting a sun with serpents heads emanating from the center circle. The painted surface is stucco-like and in excellent condition. The disc has an ancient repair of a clean horizontal break through the center. There are four attachment holes in the center as well, which implies that it was worn either as a headdress ornament or a pectoral. This is illustrated in CHANCAY. The Merrin Galleries have illustrated a painted textile with the same sun face motif and emanating serpents on a poster for an exhibition.

Period: Peru, Chancay, Central Coast, circa 1100 - 1430 AD

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Diameter 9"

Price Upon Request

98089

Peru, Early Chavin/Paracas Bowl with Transforming Cubist Face

This bowl demonstrates a human face with a distinct eye looking outward, transforming into the face of a feline entity. The red serpent above the eye suggests the presence of a supernatural demon or perhaps a knowledgeable serpent spirit guide offering wisdom. The incised designs are painted with polychrome resin pigments and has an extended lip on the rear upper edge, which was used to pour ritual libations - perhaps Ayahuasca or a similar psychedelic brew containing DMT from entheogenic plants found in the region. This bowl is also an excellent example of the geometric abstract style with bold blocks of color favored by the Paracas. It shares stylistic traits with the modern Surrealist and Cubist movements, featuring a morphing of narrative portraiture and purely abstract form. Ancient art objects with abstract and surrealist qualities were highly sought after by sophisticated collectors with excellent taste during the mid-20th Century. These collectors would combine ancient and modern artworks together, forming a unified gestalt aesthetic. Abstraction is quite rare among pre-modern societies, and one hypothesis as to why the Andeans had such a sophisticated understanding of abstract form and color is the entheogen theory. In his 2005 paper Psychoactive botanicals in ritual, religion and shamanism, Glenn H. Shepard discusses how Chavin de Huantar, the main Chavin temple, was located near a geologic unstable valley region in the Andes with a wealth of natural plant entheogens where two rivers merge. The Chavin people believed that the spirit could transcend the body and fuse with the spirit of the jaguar, a belief that was likely facilitated by entheogen use. This animistic belief system affected all subsequent Andean cultures, including the Paracas, whose would continue this belief. This bowl depicts a human face with a distinct eye, transforming into a jaguar spirit with a bright red serpent framing the eye. The red serpent suggests the presence of a sentient serpent demon or perhaps a knowledgeable spirit guide offering wisdom. A very similar vessel is in the Oscar Landmann collection #119, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Ex-Collection Anton Roeckl, Germany. Note: The bowl was painted within the incised designs with post-fired polychrome resin pigments and finished after firing with a second firing to melt the resin creating a glossy finish. This tradition began with the Chavin cult, a psychedelic cult that engaged in ritualistic jaguar worship. Using psychedelics, one could transcend the body and become the spirit of the feline. The Chavin influenced all subsequent Pre-Columbian cultures, including the Paracas, who would continue this belief. This bowl demonstrates a human face with a distinct eye looking outward, transforming into the face of a feline entity. The red serpent above the eye suggests the presents of a supernatural demon or perhaps a knowledgeable serpent spirit guide offering wisdom to the transforming shaman. This design demonstrates an animist belief in an interconnected network of souls and spirits.

Period: Peru, Paracas, Ocucaje, c. 500 BC - AD 100

Period: Peru, Paracas, Ocucaje, c. 500BC - 100AD BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 2 1/2" x Diameter: 7"

$22,500

M7134

Peru, Early Middle Horizon Mother of Pearl Round Ear Spool Front with 13 Petals

This is a very large piece for a mother of pearl carving and must have come from a very large shell. The 13 petal incised design does not represent a specific flower, but instead is an abstract form depicting a floral shape. The center hole with incised ring is typical of Late Chavin/Early Moche iconography.

Period: Peru, Chavin, Late phase, North Coast, c. 600 - 400 BC

Media: Shell

Dimensions: Diameter: 2"

Price Upon Request

m7118

Peru, Early Moche Gold Owl Ornament or Necklace Element

This ornament portrays a stylized horned owl. The owl was revered by the ancient people for its special characteristics, such as silent flight, strong talons, and its ability to rotate its head 180 degrees. This gold owl has two suspension holes to the lower rear, which would have allowed it to hang looking downward. It is constructed from flat pieces of sheet gold that were hammered and beaten into repoussé parts, and then soldered together. Such three-dimensional forms were characteristic of the Transitional phase of gold work on the North Coast after the collapse of the Chavín culture. The eyes are made from Spondylus beads.

Period: Peru, Late Chavin/Early Moche, Transitional Phase, North Coast, c. 200 BC - AD 200

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 1 1/4" X 1 1/4"/ Weight: 10 grams

Price Upon Request

M7015

Peru, Early Moche/Vicus Head of a Tucan with Dangles

This object is quite rare and is from Northern Peru, by the Maranon river valley where other Vicus style objects have come from. It is fashioned from a heavy sheet, bent, soldered, and has dangles. It would have fit front and center onto a headdress, attached using the tabs at the back. The rods that hold the dangles are soldered, along with the bottom of the beak. The eyes are soldered rings with turquoise inlays. A similar object is illustrated in the GOLD OF PERU, Mujica Gaillo collection.

Period: Peru, Vicus, Far North Coast, c. 300 BC - AD 300

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length 3 3/4" Weight 32.8 grams

$8,500

91055

Peru, Early Nasca Gold Pair of Earrings with Filigree Decoration

A matched set of Nasca gold earrings with true filigree work and original archaeological patina. The wire is skillfully soldered to the central disc.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Width 1 3/8" Weight: 3.8 grams

Price Upon Request

87044

Peru, Early Nazca/Late Wari Tie- Dye Patchwork Rectangular Bag

This tie dye rectangular bag with discontinuous interlocking patchwork was probably used for carrying feathers. The bag was made from surplus squares left over from a larger mantle, utilizing the scaffold technique. Collected by Gunnolf Bjorkman who worked in Lima in the 1960's and settled in Buenos Aires.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 300 - 700

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 26" x Width: 4 1/2 in.

$7,250

91265

Peru, Early Nazca/Sihuas Feather Tunic With the Eight Pointed Star On an Orange Ground

This tunic with an eight-pointed star motif, also referred to as the Radiant Sun, is similar to other published tunics. The front part is a complete star with assorted color blocks of blue feathers. The back of the tunic has only two blue stripes on an orange ground with a fringe of turquoise macaw tail feathers. The blue feathers do not contain blue pigment, but instead are natural prisms which brightly reflect the color of the sky. I believe that all the feathers are from the Scarlet, Yellow, and Blue Macaws. Tunics with similar motifs are illustrated in TEXTILE ART OF PERU, 1989, L.L. Editores, Lima. pages145,-147 & 163. Usually tunics with an eight-pointed star motif are from the Nazca region, from the South coast of Peru. This tunic was found in the Sihuas region near the city of Arequipa and predates the Nazca by 500 years. The backing fabric is fragile and needs proper conservation.

Period: Peru, Sihuas II, Southern Andes, c. AD 100 - 300

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 56" x Width 35" (142cm X 88.9cm)

Price Upon Request

N1028

Peru, Early Paracas Double-Cloth Mantle with Bands of Interlocking Serpents on Strawberry Ground

This beautiful woven textile features lime green bands of interlocking geometric double-headed snakes on a red ground. The interlocking serpent motif is one of the oldest motifs in the Andes, dating prior to 1,500 BC. Snakes were an important part of Andean mythology; they emerge following a rain and are often portrayed in Pre-Columbian art together with imagery of water, rainbows, and energy. Double-headed snakes do exist in nature, although they are extremely rare, and it is likely that they were considered a powerful omen of abundance in Paracas animist cosmology. The double-headed snakes portrayed here also feature lightning strike designs on their torsos, which convey a sense of energy, motion, and power.
The contrasting combination of bright red and lime green fields create an optical illusion that the snakes are vibrating. These two carefully chosen hues of red and green are at opposite ends of the visual spectrum that the human eye can see, causing the brain to become overloaded, which translates into a sense of vibration. The Paracas’ knowledge of color with many of the great abstract color theorist artists of the 20th Century such as Albers, Malevich, and Kandinsky. Ancient works of art with abstract beauty such as this were highly sought after during the golden age of collecting in the Mid-20th century by wealthy collectors as well as artists such as Matisse and Picasso.
The mantle bands were woven using a complicated technique called double cloth in which the front side motifs are in opposite colors from the rear. This same motif appears in the frontispiece in Bird and Bellinger's catalog raisonne Paracas Textiles. Professionally restored and mounted on a stretcher. Acquired by David Bernstein in 2000.

Period: Peru, Paracas, South Coast Early Intermediate Period, Phase II, c. AD 100 - 200

Period: Peru, Paracas, South Coast Early Intermediate Period, Phase II, c. AD 100 - 200

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 63 in. x Width: 39 in.

$38,000

MM318

Peru, Effigy Vessel of a Patagonian Toothfish with Resin Pigment

This bridge-spout vessel depicts a toothfish decorated with longitudinal bands of buff and green pigment. The protruding head and fins resemble the Patagonian toothfish, popularly known as the Chilean sea bass. These fish were caught with a hook and line in ancient Pre-Columbia and are still caught this way in modern times. The Patagoninan toothfish, (Dissostichus eleginoides) has a long life span and is thought to live up to 50 years. The average toothfish weighs between 15 and 20 pounds, however they can grow as large as 220 pounds. The flaring spouts indicate that the ceramic was crafted in the Paracas Necropolis style, as opposed to the more common Cavernas style, which features blind bridge spouts. The harmonic balance between naturalism and abstraction is a unique stylistic trait in Andean art that attracted cubist and minimalist artists such as Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore to ancient Andean art. These famous artists were intrigued by Andean art and wanted to replicate this method of combining abstract forms and narrative imagery in their own paintings and sculpture. Alan Sawyer discusses the Necropolis style in his book Ancient Peruvian Ceramics: The Nathan Cummings collection on pages 96-97, fig. 135-138. The only other known Paracas toothfish vessel is in the Museum of the University Agraria, Lima, Peru. Acquired from the estate of British collector. London, prior to 1996.

Period: Peru, Paracas, South Coast, c. 500 - 200 BC

Period: Peru, Paracas, South Coast, c. 500 - 200 BC

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 6 1/2" (14.2 cm.) X Length: 8" (18 cm.)

$35,000

96044

Peru, Four Paracas Embroidered Nightjars

This beautiful series of Nightjar birds is mounted on a fine netting with embroidery on both sides but is displayed on a white backing for ease of viewing. Nightjars are identifiable by the two extremely long feathers which extend down beyond their tails, possibly as a display to attract mates. The Nightjar, a nocturnal bird of prey, is a rare subject in Andean art; most birds depicted are picaflors or hummingbirds. These Nightjars are seen feasting on clusters of small snakes that resemble garter snakes. Excellent color. Ex. collection Ferdinand Anton, Germany, prior to 1980.

Peru, Paracas, Late Phase, South Coast, c. 200 BC - AD 100

Period: Peru, Paracas, Late Phase, South Coast, c. 200 BC - AD 100

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Width: 6" x Height: 4"
Mounted: W: 20" x H: 16"

$1,600

79042

Peru, Huacho Carved Loom Bar with “Mooneater” Deities

This loom bar was once part of a backstrap loom - the most common loom type in the ancient Andes, dating back to the late Chavin Period. Andean backstrap looms are usually 22-28” in width. It would have been one of two bars needed to hold the warps together to the upper bar. This bar is elaborately decorated with an intricately carved “Mooneater” deity at each end.

Period: Peru, Huacho Valley, Late Intermediate Period, c. AD 700 - 1100

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Width: 24" x Diameter: 1/2"

$1,700

p2032H

Peru, Huacho Carved Wooden Pair of Abstract Female Figures

These figures are unusual in form and share a similarity with 19th century Mapuche burial markers and are thought to be totems. Each figure holds its hands to the mouth have pronounced knees and display female genitalia. The backs of the figures are flat. Carved wooden figures are mostly found in burials during the Late Intermediate Period.

Period: Peru, Huacho Valley, Late Intermediate Period, c. AD 700 - 1100

Media: Wood

Dimensions: HeightA: 7 1/2" Height: B 5 1/4"

$1,950

p2042AB

Peru, Huari bone carved "Attelatel" handle with seated feline and deer

This was the grip for a spear thrower, with its original tie hole attachement. On the base of the feline is a deer wtih its antlers. This is a common motif throughout antiquity starting with the Sythicans of Russia where a lion is always attacking deer.

Period: Huari, South Coast Peru, c. 700-900 A.D.

Media: Bone

Dimensions: H. 4 x W. 1 1/4 in.

$9,500

91181

Peru, Huarmay Tapestry Border to a Poncho with Three Warriors

This classic Huarmay style tapestry is crafted in the classic Huarmay colors of ivory, blue, and red with black outlines. Each warrior wears different colors, and each holds a tumi in his left hand and wears an elaborate headdress with two long, forward-tilting plumes. Separating the warriors are blocks of ivory with three abstract birds on a diagonal. Along the bottom edge is a repeating classic step volute line in blue with a white outline. The Huarmay culture thrived during the Late Moche Period on the most Southern of the fourteen Moche valleys, and were influenced by the Wari. Mounted, in a Plexiglas box. Minor losses to the ivory central panel. Formerly in a New York private collection prior to 1979.

Period: Peru, Huarmay, Central Coast, c. AD 650 - 800

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Width: 48" x Height: 6 1/2"

$8,500

n9040

Peru, Huarmey Tapestry deity with rayed headdress

This is a very large single figure for any Peruvian weaving, and it was originally attached to a mantle of sheer cotton. The figure wears a headdress, ear spools, necklace, and tunic with a serpent belt in the red, blue and ivory colors typical of Huarmey textiles. The Huarmey Valley is the most southern in the Moche area and had, therefore, a lot of Wari influence in its art. This figure is stylistically more Wari than Moche in its abstract appearance.

Period: Peru, Moche, Huarmey Valley, circa AD700-900

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 32" x Width 24"

Price Upon Request

92305

Peru, Inca Black Stone Konopa in the form of a Llama

Konopas were used to burn animal fats in the fields to bring fertility to the crops and herds, and the practice continues today. Ancient konopas were carved, and their interiors contained a curved chamber for offerings.

Period: Peru, Inca, South Coast, c. AD 1200 - 532

Media: Stone

Dimensions: Length 4 1/2"

$800

M4070

Peru, Inca Bronze Star Mace

This mace was well cast with a lost wax method. The Andean cultures utilized clobbering technology for their weapons, as opposed to swords and knives used in battle by their ancient European counterparts. The star motif was an Inca design and quite effective as a weapon. This mace was from the North Coast of Peru where they had arsenical bronze as opposed to Tin bronze found in the Southern highlands of Peru and Bolivia. Similar 5-pointed bronze maces are illustrated in Copper of Ancient Peru pg 425. Original patina, and intact in most places. Mounted on a custom-made base.

Period: Peru, North Coast, c. AD 1350 - 1530

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 4 1/2" x Width: 4 1/2"

$1,350

96120

Peru, Inca Carved Spondylus Shell in the Form of a Female

The female is holding her hands to her belly. The shell was carved in such a way that the front of the doll is reddish-orange and the rear is the white part of the Spondylus shell. These carved dolls were placed in burials of young girls as a sacrifice.

Period: Peru, Inca, South Coast, circa AD1200 -1532

Media: Shell

Dimensions: Height 4cm

Price Upon Request

N5048

Peru, Inca Gold Hollow Llama

These Llamas, along with other miniatures in gold, silver and spondylus were found at high altitude sacrificial burials sites, used in a ceremony known as the Capac Hucha ceremony to praise the Inca. A similar llama is illustrated in ANCIENT AMERICANS, Art From Sacred Landscapes p. 362. This hollow llama was assembled from hammered gold sheets which were soldered together. One seam can be easily seen along the underside. Ex. New York collector, prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Inca, Early Phase, South Highlands, c. AD 650 - 1250

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 2.5" Weight: grams 9.6
XRF: Au. 66.4%, Ag. 24.6% , Cu8.8%

Price Upon Request

n7053

Peru, Inca Large Bronze Axe with Curved Blade

This blade exhibits classic Inca style, which employed crisp, clean, artistic lines, even for simple tools. It has a cast hole for attachment to the side of a shaft which it would have been lashed to. These axes were forged from tin bronze, the official metal of the Inca realm, in a process called slush casting. Molten bronze was poured into open molds. For more examples of lunate axes see Carcedo de Mufarech (1999: figs. 164 and 165).

Technical Features
The blade was annealed after casting to sharpen the cutting edge.

Period: Peru, Inca, North Coast, c. AD 1350 - 500

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height 5" x Width: 5.75
XRF Data
Base: Ag 0.100 ,As 1.530 Cd 0.01, Cu 96.270, Mn 0.020, Ni 0.010, Pb 0.010, Sb 0.110, Se 0.100, Zn 0.01.

$1,200

MM228B

Peru, Inca Silver Bowl

An unusually high walled dish with flared edges, hammered from a single ingot of silver. It was repeatedly annealed and hammered to create a well-proportioned vessel.

Period: Peru, Inca, North Coast, c. AD 1350 - 500

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Diameter of bowl: 5 1/4 in., Height of flask:

$1,200

89400

Peru, Inca Tiana Carved Wooden Seat

Tianas were originally made from a single block of wood during Inca times (1250-1500AD). These wooden seats and other specified goods were limited for use by the Inca class. Tianas continued to be used well after the Spanish conquest. A well known Tiana survives in the Berlin Museum.

Period: Peru, Inca, South Coast, circa AD1200 -1532

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Length 14' x Width 11" x Height 4"

$8,000

M7012

Peru, Inca Wood Polychrome Kero Incised with Spider and Geometric Designs

This kero is an extremely fine example of incising technique. The overall surface is incredibly intricate. The incision lines mimic the natural geometry imposed by the repeated motif of an abstract spider moving vertically on the upper and lower portions of the vase. The creature's body is highlighted with red, yellow and green paint. The central band is accented with patterned bands of diamonds and circles and squares in red, yellow, green, black and white. The rim and base are accented with simple green bands. Such great attention to linear detail and mastery of the incising technique suggests that this is an earlier kero (possibly 16th century). Examples illustrating the incising technique can be seen on p.54 of 'QEROS: Arte Inka en Vasos Ceremoniales', by Jorge Flores Ochoa. This book is part of the Coleccion Arte Y Tesoros Del Peru.

Period: Peru, Inka, Colonial Period, 1600-1800AD

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height: 5 1/4"

$12,500

MM110

Peru, Inca/Ica Tapestry Borders to a Tunic depicting creatures in profile holding a bird

A very finely woven tapestry work in alternating color arrangements on tan and red grounds. The creature is wearing an upside down tunic on his head with a early Inca motif of checkerboard pattern. Color is used to create hidden images.

Period: Peru, Ica/Chincha, Moquega Valley, South Coast, circa AD1000-1450

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 24 1/2" x Width 3 1/4" framed / 23" x 2 1/4" unmounted

$4,850

M3136

Peru, Knotted Textile Fringe with Colorful Abstract Motif

This knotted fringe is distinguished by its brilliant colors and abstract "z" motif repeated along the band. It was not woven on a loom but instead was created by a method referred to as "tubular looping." Looping is a single-element technique in which the free end and full length of the yarn are pulled through previous work at the edge of the fabric to form each new loop. Looping predates the domestication of fiber-bearing plants and animals and the invention of weaving in the Americas and possibly Eurasia. The choice of color combinations creates a vibrating impact.

Period: Peru, Nazca-Early phase, South Coast, circa AD200-400

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 61 inches; Width: 2 inches

$3,000

91105

Peru, Lambayeque Whistling Vessel with Bat Atop Pacay Fruit

This ceramic bridge-spout whistling effigy vessel was crafted in the shape of fruit bat resting atop a Pacay. The Pacay fruit, found in the Amazon, is related to mangoes and guavas. Fruit bats have an extremely good sense of smell and sharp teeth with which to open the tough skins of fruits. The whistle built into the vessel, customary for Lambayeque vessels, is seen just behind the bat. Bats are a rare motif and quite meaningful in ancient Andean mythology as they are associated with transport to other worlds. The vessel was painted with orange slip and black octopus ink on a buff ceramic ground. There are only two other known Lambayeque vessels with sculptures of bats, one is illustrated in "Ceramics of Ancient Peru" by Christopher Donnan, 1992, p.89, and the other is the property of The American Museum of Natural History.

Period: Peru, Sican, c. AD 800 - 1100

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 8" x Length 6 1/2"

Price Upon Request

mm145

Peru, Large fragment to a Wari tunic in Unusual Colors with Abstract Monkey Faces

The fragment consists of two large sections that join, making it almost 60 inches in length. The design is of opposing monkeys in profile. Both profile monkey faces also combine to create a third, larger monkey face in two colors. The monkey’s tail turns into a step fret motif, typical of Wari tunics. The thread count is high, at around 120 per inch. The warps are of cotton and the wefts are of fine alpaca. Cotton warps suggests that the tunic was woven on the coast.

Period: Peru, Wari, South Coast, c. AD 600 - 900

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Overall length is 60" x Width of 20"
Section A Length: 30" x Width: 20"
Section B Length: 30" x Width: 20'

$6,950

n7018

Peru, Large Wari Carved Wood Lime Container Representing a Decapitator

This large wood lime container is carved in the form of a classic Wari decapitator holding a trophy head in his right hand. These containers were used to store lime, which assists the body in metabolizing cocaine alkaloids from ground coca leaves. The opposite side would have had him holding a tumi knife. The decapitator is wearing an elaborate costume with a puma mask and a tapestried tunic with feline profile faces. Below the mask is an elaborate pectoral of trapezoidal plaques. One half of the container is missing, and the inside reveals a storage chamber. The puma is elaborately decorated with classic Tiahuanaco motifs from the Gateway of the Sun. Evidence of inlays in the eye sockets exist. The container portrays a major sculpture in wood for this period. Another lime container in the National Museum of Copenhagen of the same height, 5.75" is illustrated in "Art of Empire, Museum of Primitive Art" - fig. 80.m. There is a chapter in the Peruvian publication Los Dios del Antiguo Peru - Dioses De Pachacamac El Idolo Y el Templo, pages 159-175, which discusses a carved wood idol on a staff. This staff in the book has many elements that are similar to this lime container, specifically the arched serpent and profile face.

Period: Peru, Huari South Highlands/Coast, circa 650-900A.D.

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height: 4 1/2"

$8,000

97158

Peru, Large Wari wooden lime container in the form of a seated man

This large Wari wooden lime container is in the form of a kneeling figure carrying an axe in one hand and a group of darts in the other. He wears a circular hat which is also the lid of the container and a pair of earspools.

Period: Peru, Wari South Coast, circa AD650-900

Media: Wood

Dimensions: Height 4 3/4 in.

Price Upon Request

93123

Peru, Late Chavin Hammered and Soldered Gold pendant with a Feline Head

This is a rare Chavin gold work that has been soldered - the ears to the head and the head to the body. There are two sets of suspension holes on each side of the mouth. There are two more suspension holes for danglers by each paw. There is repousse depicting the mouth and nose and on each paw. Estate of Bill Simmons, acquired at Sotheby's Sale # 7996, May 2004, lot 107.

Period: Africa, Cameroon

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 7cm x Width: 8.3cm Wt. 24.3 grams.
XRF Au 85%, Ag 13.3%, Cu 1.08%.

Price Upon Request

n8011

Peru, Late Nasca Gold Cuff with Embossed Faces

A hammered and repousse gold cuff decorated with two rows of faces, probably representing masks. I have not seen many cuffs embossed, as most Late Nasca art consists of simple wrought gold, occasionally with a geometric pattern. These embossed masks are quite rare. There are two tie holes on each edge of the cuff. Similar Nasca gold cuffs are illustrated in the THE GOLD OF PERU, MUJICA GAILLO COLLECTION. Ex-Collection Jean Eugene Lions, St. Tropez, since 1970.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height 2 1/4' Weight 40 grams
Alloy: Au.32.7, Ag. 55.3 & Cu.11.6 = 99.6%

$6,750

M5078

Peru, Late Nazca Ceramic Vessel in the form of a Howling Man

A very delicately modeled and painted miniature vessel of a howling man. The face can be read upside-down as well. Seen from right-side up, the figure appears to be wearing a tunic and cape decorated with abstract heads. From upside-down the tunic turns into a scarf, and the cape becomes the tunic. The face also changes according to the direction the object is seen from. The howling image is associated with decapitation and the trophy head ritual.

Period: Peru, Late Nasca drainage, South Coast, c. AD 600 - 800

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 4 1/4"

Price Upon Request

92037

Peru, Late Paracas Needlework Border with Hummingbirds and Cactus Flowers

The border is composed of cross loop needle-knitted hummingbirds sucking the nectar from flowering cacti in alternating color arrangements. There are ten basic colors with additional tones to include blues, grays, greens, gold, pinks, purples, reds, tans and whites. Each bird's head has a long beak, different colored eyes, a slender body, and a wide tail. The cacti are made in five parts, from the upper flower to the lower flower’s broad cactus leaves. The Nasca people are considered to have the most colorful costumes in all antiquity. Their richly colored weavings are often perfectly preserved, having been buried in the driest dessert in the world. Nasca borders and fringes would surround an entire mantle or tunic, which could be many yards in length. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has only two short segments depicting hummingbirds. The Textile Museum in Washington, D.C. has a similar border that is only 21” in length, which is illustrated in EARLY NASCA NEEDLEWORK by Alan Sawyer, image 116. Other early Nasca needle knit birds are in the Met Museum. Formerly in the collection of Justin Kerr, New York, prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Paracas, South Coast, c. 200 - 100 BC

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 40" x Height 3"
Frame dimensions: Length 42" x Height: 9"

Price Upon Request

n7035

Peru, Late Paracas/Early Nasca Embroidered Section with Four Colorful Monkey Deities in Alternating Colors on a Gold Ground

This textile portrays a series of ecstatic shamans as Animal Impersonators. The main figures, depicted with flying wings, are referred to as monkey deities because they have opposing toes. The bright, abstract color combinations not normally found in nature and the dense shamanic imagery such as double-headed serpents, flint knives, and trophy heads, could easily have been the result of a psychedelic journey. Note: Psychiatrist Oscar Janiger’s studies in the 1950s revealed that that LSD “not only radically changed the [artist’s] style but also gave them new depths to understand the use of color, form, light, or the way these things are viewed in a frame of reference.” (Dobkin/Janiger, 2003, p.80]. The beautifully contrasting colors, and the fluidity of the figure-ground relationship of this Paracas textile connotes a psychedelic influence on the ancient Paracas and Nasca people -possibly that of psilocybin. Shamanic animal transformation in Andean art represents the journey to the afterlife by way of psychic flight. From top to bottom: The top figure wears a grey puma headdress with Chile peppers, a white nose ornament, and a tunic with a step volute border. Serpents with suspended kidney beans flank him on both sides, and another serpent emanates from his mouth. The second wears a diadem on his forehead, a cloak, and a loin cloth, and is surrounded by three animal heads. He wears a gold mask with a serpent emanating from his mouth and holds a trophy head in one hand and a flint knife in the other. The following figure repeats the compositional structure of the first figure but has a completely different color arrangement. The last figure repeats the structure of the second figure, also in completely different colors. No two figures are the same, and the curvature of the snakes created in alternating colors conveys a sense of motion. Another section from the same textile is in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

Period: Peru, Paracas-Ocucaje 10, or Nasca 1, South Coast, c. BC 100 - AD 100

Period: Peru, Paracas-Ocucaje 10, or Nasca 1, South Coast, c. BC 100 - AD 100

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Textile, Length: 24" x Width: 2 3/4"
Plexiglas frame, Length: 27"x Width: 5 1/2"

Price Upon Request

pp008

Peru, Loma Negra Copper Applique of the Decapitator

Appliques of this supernatural were sewn in series on woven textiles such as tunics and banners. The figure is known as the Decapitator, who has a distinctive mouth and often fangs, and whose right hand holds a tumi knife (blade lost) and a trophy head in the left. There are two holes in each diagonal of the ornament for attachment to a garment. A similar example is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY); more are illustrated in Lapiner (1976: figs. 350 and 382) and Carcedo de Mufarech (1999: 364). Loma Negra was a royal cemetery discovered about 1968 near the modern day city of Piura on the far north coast of Peru. From the tombs came exquisite Moche works in metal, mostly copper, with silver and gold objects as well, in sets of different sizes. The Decapitator is also called Ai Apec, the god who took off the heads of captives with his crescent bladed tumi knife. In another guise, he is Wrinkle Face, an aged deity with the same open mouth and fangs. The plaques seem to have been specific to the Loma Negra region, although the theme of the Decapitator dates back to the Chav�n period (Bawden 1999: 150-151). Scholarly research indicates that the overall form of the Decapitator on Loma Negra plaques was based on the body of an outstretched spider.

Period: Peru, Moche, Loma Negra, North Coast, circa AD100-300

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 5 1/2" x Width: 6"

Price Upon Request

98249

Peru, Loma Negra Gilt Copper Pair of Hoverflies

The flies are examples of a highly skilled gilding technique over copper. The construction is of tab and hammered and shaped parts to create a three-dimensional body. This was preferred in Peru over lost wax casting. Loma Negra Royal tombs were found in Northern Peru in the 1960's. The largest holdings of this material are in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Other examples of critters are illustrated in PRE-COLUMBIAN ART of South America by Alan Lapiner, fig 376. There is a Loma Negra fly in the Met Museum ref 1981.459.28 in poor condition. Hoverflies are among the largest flies and have colorful bodies and are harmless. They often imitate bees or wasps as a survival technique to appear dangerous to their predators. The Peruvian favored animals that metamorphose, (eggs, large, maggots to flies) as proof that humans can transcend into spirits. Since hoverflies have colorful yellow and black bodies they connect with gold of the sun. These flies are considered large for Loma Negra creatures and have no apparent function.

Period: Peru, Moche, Loma Negra, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 400

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length 4 1/2" x Width with wings 4" Height :1 1/2"

$15,000

M9067

Peru, Moche 4 Stirrup Spout Vessel painted with a Strombus Monster

The vessel is finely drawn with reddish brown slip on a cream ground and depicts a Strombus galeatus monster coming out of its shell on both sides. The monster has a long curving tail and an exposed a front leg. Christopher Donnan describes this monster in MOCHE ART OF PERU, pg. 64. From the estate of Philip L. Herman prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Moche IV/V, North Coast, c. AD 400 - 700

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 12 1/4"

$6,500

n6048

Peru, Moche Cast Copper Gilt Handled Mirror Surrounded by Ten Pumas

Hand-held mirrors are rare from any Peruvian cultures, and those few that are known are carved from wood, except one other gilt copper one that is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Mirrors were important objects for high status individuals and symbolized the power of the sun. Both mirrors were found at the Loma Negra site of far North Peru, excavated in the 1960’s, and were made by the same workshop. The mirrors have different themes: the Met’s with birds, and this one with felines.
Both mirrors were constructed in the same manner - cast frames are mechanically attached to the handle with a separate sheet of copper backing to hold pyrite mirror fragments in place. The Met’s mirror has lost most of its original gilding. This mirror has more of the original gilt surface intact and has a reconstructed mirror of ancient pyrite, whereas the Met’s mirror was restored with wax and coated with silver foil. The felines surrounding the frame were individually modeled and cast as one with the frame, an extremely difficult technical accomplishment. Each puma has carved turquoise eyes. The few other known mirrors with handles which have been found were carved from wood. There are no other known mirrors with metal frames according to Dr. Christopher Donnan formerly at UCLA and the world expert on Moche Art.
To read an essay about this mirror, click here.

Period: Peru, Loma Negra, North Coast, c. AD 100 - P300

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 9 1/4"(23.5cm) x Width: 5"(12.6cm)

Price Upon Request

n7005

Peru, Moche Ceramic Section to a Portrait Vessel

The portrait masks of the represents the same individual that is illustrated in MOCHE PORTRAITS OF ANCIENT PERU by Christopher Donnan on page 92. The published version has the exact same facial features, but is older in age. The Moche are known to have made portraits of the same person throughout different life stages. Ex. collection of Mark Moore, by descent from his father Lee Moore. Prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Moche IV, Huaca La Luna, North Coast, c. AD 300 - 450

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 5 1/2" x Width: 7 1/4"

Price Upon Request

p2045

Peru, Moche Copper Hand

This hand was hammered and raised over a wooden model. It is a clenched fist with fingernails to the palm. The right hand belonged to a set of separate pieces, including face mask, torso, feet and hands that were sewn onto a cloth banner and placed over the deceased, such as found in a tomb at Sipán (Alva and Donnan 1993: 65-66). The authors also illustrate a Moche vessel with two figures holding banners. A similar set of face mask, feet and hands is illustrated in Carcedo de Mufarech (1999: fig. 39).

Period: Peru, Moche, Loma Negra, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 400

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 12.5 cm; Width: 9.7 cm

$1,500

97107 B

Peru, Moche Copper Spatula of a Warrior-lord with staff and shield

A warrior lord is spledidly dressed in full regalia wearing a helmet with feather crescent headdress, woven tunic, semi-circular nose ring and ear ornaments. He holds the standard long war club and round shield, such as appear in scenes of battle on fineline painted vessels. A small feline is splayed across the figure's back, wearing a necklace or belt of small owl heads. This work was cast in one piece in the lost-wax process. Spatulas were symbols of power for the high status Moche and were used in coca rituals to communicate with the ancestors and spirits of the otherworld. There is a suspension loop under the upper platform to be hung from a belt or the neck.

Period: Peru, Moche, North Coast, circa AD100- 600

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height 8 1/2"

$5,500

98343

Peru, Moche Cylindrical Container with 6 Decapitators in High Relief

The container has a cover with an incised drawing of a weapons bundle. It’s a very rare object and is constructed with a complicated double wall technique. The outer wall was embossed by hammering the thin copper sheet against a wooden form carved with the figures. The inner wall is a plane sheet and annealed to the outer sheet and hammered around a form in the shape of bottom disc.

Period: Peru, Moche IV/V, North Coast, c. AD 400 - 700

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 2 1/4" x Diamerter: 3" Circumfrence: : 10"

$12,000

n4013

Peru, Moche Gold Bead in the Form of a Tree Snail

The tree snail, Strophoceheilus, is featured in drawings on the sides of Moche ceramic vessels. The drawings depict "snail hunters" from low hanging trees in the foothills of the Andes. The emergence of snails signals the start of the rainy season. This bead is made in two parts, with the bottom expertly soldered to the spiral cone-shaped shell. The bottom is decorated with the snail’s foot, exposed inside the shell. There are two copper beads inside the shell, which rattle when worn. This bead originally belonged to a necklace of snail beads, each with two sets of suspension holes on the bottom. It is illustrated in Oro del Antiguo Peru, lam.183. Ex-collection Benno Mattel by descent to his daughter Karin Ashburn.

Period: Peru, Moche, Loma Negra, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 400

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 5cm x Width: 6cm Weight: 36.4 grams

$35,000

n8018

Peru, Moche Gold Nose Ornament with 6 Embossed Uculla Fruit

The Uculla fruit was an anti-coagulant to thin prisoners' blood for ritual ceremonies. The patina contains ferric oxide from the soil in the vicinity of the burial site, which gives the gold ornament its beautiful red patina. This piece was hammered from a soft sheet of pure gold. Small gold ornaments such as this required excellent craftsmanship to execute.

n9056

Peru, Moche Gold Nose Ornament with Hummingbird in a Tree

Delicately crafted hummingbird figure with inlaid turquoise eyes and danglers. This is an example of Moche soldering and filigree workmanship.

Period: Peru, Moche, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 300

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Width 1 1/2"
XRF: Au. 78.7%, Ag. 14.6%, Cu. 6.5% & Ga. Gallium .05%, Pt. Platimum .06%

$12,000

90166

Peru, Moche Gold Nose Ornment Surrounded with 18 Spheres

Each of the spheres are individually soldered to the base. Illustrated in Oro del Antiguo Peru, Lam. 134. Ex collection Benno Mattel, prior to 1970, by descent to his daughter Karin Ashburn.

Period: Peru, Moche, Loma Negra, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 400

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 5.5cm x Width: 7cm , Weight: 27.3 grams

$27,500

n8020

Peru, Moche Gold Tweezers With Embossed Large Eared Bat Face

Pincers have been found from as early as the Vicus period (pre-Moche), circa 300 BC and were thought to be used to pluck facial hair. Few are known from the Moche period and most of the pincers that have been found were from the Chimu and Inca periods. This particular pincer has an embossed face of a bat with fanged teeth. This pincer was made from one hammered sheet of high carat gold and embossed twice on a carved wood form of a bat face and bent in the middle. There is also a suspension hole in the middle. The blades of the pincer flare out in the form of a Moche back flap. Ex. collection Eduwardo Aldunate, Santiago, Chile-prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Moche, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 700

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Length: 2 3/8" x Width: 1 1/2" Weight: 16.6 grams
XRF: Au62.5%, Ag. 34.7%, Cu. 2.5%

$9,750

n7012

Peru, Moche Grayware Rattle Cup with the Decapitator

A well modeled portrait of Ai Apaec wearing his characteristic puma ring headdress with its tail incised on the back of the vessel. The perforated base of the cup contains clay beads which make the vessel rattle with movement. Ai Apaec was an old wrinkled god associated with war and sacrifice, hence his other titles as the Decapitator and Wrinkle Face.

Period: Peru, Moche III, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 500

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 5 1/4" x Width: 4 1/2"

$5,200

M3147

Peru, Moche I - II Effigy Vessel of the Decapitator Ai Apaec

This is an early version of the Decapitator deity known as Ai Apaec. The deity always wears a feline headdress, but early versions also show him with a turban. This headdress not only has a puma skin but also a Plume of feathers represented by the conical form ontop of his head. He also wears a lovely Pectoral with individual plaques sewn onto a leather backing. The Decapitator is one of the earliest supernaturals in the Moche ceramic sequence, and he frequently carries a tumi knife and a decapitated head. The Decapitator continued into later cultures, notably the Wari and the Chimu. Formerly in a European collection since the 1970s.

Period: Peru, Moche I, North Coast, circa AD100-300

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 7 1/2"

$29,000

M7073

Peru, Moche I Blackware Architectural Model Depicting An Adobe Temple Site

This model is like one now in the National Museum of Archaeology in Lima, Peru (#c-54613). It was originally drawn as it might have been seen in ancient times by artist Alejandro Gonzales in 1936. This drawing is published in ARCHITECTURAL VESSELS OF THE Moche, by Juliet Wiersema, p.3, University of Austin Press. According to Dr. Christopher Donnan, a Moche scholar, the Moche often produced nearly identical ceramics with the same theme. From the estate of Philip L. Herman and collected in the 1950's -1960's.

Period: Peru, Moche I, North Coast, c. AD 1 - 250

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Width: 6" x Length 4 1/2" x Height: 8"

$12,000

n6047

Peru, Moche I Ceramic stirrup-spout effigy of a seated toad in buff with red throat

This stirrup spout vessel depicting a life-like frog/toad attests to the Moche artist's fond awareness of the natural world. Such careful attention and adeptness at naturalistic portrayals of animal images is common of Early Moche ceramics. Frogs have bulbous eyes, strong, long webbed feet, and slimy skin, while toads have stubby bodies, warty, dry skin, different chest cartliage and paratoid glands behind the eyes. Their large eyes are defined with a ridge. Also, toads do not have teeth, while frogs have upper teeth. This rotund fellow with his alert wide-eyed gaze and attentive posture seems all too ready to ambush an unsuspecting fly. It is slip painted in cream and the head tilts upward, exposing a rosy orange gullet beneath the determined, down-turned mouth. Images of frogs and toads (anurans) are commonly interpreted in the art of many Pre-Columbian cultures. Because of their musical croaking performances after heavy rains, frogs and toads are associated with water, vegetation , fertility, and in some cases (usually toads), toxicity. The cyclic quality of their development --the change from the fish-like tadpole to adult frog, allude to a natural affiliation with mythical concepts of transformation. Similar examples are illustrated in "Pre-Columbian Art of South America", by Alan Lapiner, fig. 281, p129, and in "Moche Art of Peru", by Christopher B. Donnan, fig. 81, p.57. as well as in Ceramics of Ancient Peru by Donnan, 1992, UCLA, p. 128.

Period: Peru, Moche I, North Coast, circa AD100-300

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 7" x Width: 5"

$5,400

98439

Peru, Moche II Grayware Vessel with Embracing Couple

An embracing couple is an extremely rare subject for Andean art from any culture. Although ancient Andean art features many human characters such as hunters and shamans, as well as semi-human deities with a wide range themes and emotions, romantic couples are not a common theme. In this sculptural depiction of a Moche couple, the male wears large ear ornaments, and holds a conch trumpet, and the female wears a feather plume in her hair, all signs of wealth and status.

Period: Peru, Moche II, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 350

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 8"

Price Upon Request

M9015H

Peru, Moche III Ceramic Vessel in the Form of a Gabled House

This house or religious center is detailed with a gabled roof and stucco decoration with painted spears. A priest is portrayed in the doorway in full regalia. Ex Collection Of Sue Tishman, prior to 1970.

Period: Peru, Moche III, North Coast, circa AD300-500

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 9"

$7,000

M7019

Peru, Moche III Fineline Vessel Depicting a Coca Ceremony

A fine example depicting the coca ritual. On one side we see 4 seated men holding the traditional gourd lime containers and administrating lime to extract the coca from the leaf. On the other side we see a figure with hands clasped holding a coca leaf bag and surrounded by bats, dark balls, and the Bicephalus Arc (double-headed serpent) which symbolize psychic flight and the praying for rain. There are three other known examples of the Coca-ritual under the Bicephalus Arc in Pre-Colombian art. One is in the Linden Museum in Stuttgardt and two others are in the collection of the Museo Arqueologico Raphfael Larco Herrera, Lima. All three are discussed in an article THE PRIESTS OF THE BICEPHALUS ARC by Santiago Uceda and published in THE ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE MOCHE, pg. 153-178, University of Texas Press 2008 . Formerly in the collection of Benno Mattel and exhibited at the British Consulate in Punta Del Este. Subsequently sold to a US collector in the US where it remained for ten years. Rollout drawing in Moche Archive #157.

Period: Peru, Moche III, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 500

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 10" x Diameter 5 3/4"

Price Upon Request

n2002

Peru, Moche III/IV Redware Mold Made Jar Depicting a Dignitary

The figure is wearing a head cloth underneath a Puma head ring with straps ending in tassels and large paws, with its polka-dot tail down his back. He also wears large ear spools which denote his status. He holds his hands to his chest below a semi-circular breast ornament. These vessels were made in a two-part mold, one for the front and the other for the back.

Period: Peru, Moche IV, North Coast, c. AD 400 - 550

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 12 1/2"

Price Upon Request

n6049

Peru, Moche IV fine line ceramic stirrup spout vessel of Serpents

A large stirrup spout vessel painted with four undulating serpents facing upwards, one in each quadrant in red/brown on a beige ground. The serpent represents rebirth, the shedding of its skin repeating as much as four times, perhaps for each season. Stirrup spout vessels were used to hold ceremonial corn beer and the spout allowed the air to enter one channel while the liquid was able to pour through the other channel.

Period: Moche, North Coast Peru, circa. 450-550 A.D.

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 11 1/2"

$4,500

90078

Peru, Moche Lost Wax Cast Bronze Tumi of a Warrior Capturing a Feline Deity

This classic tumi was lost wax cast using a single mold. There are two figures: a warrior and his victim, whom he holds by the hair. The victim, a feline deity, holds a tumi in one hand and a trophy head in the other.

Period: Peru, Moche IV, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 500

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 7 1/4" x Width: 2 1/2"

$6,000

P1037

Peru, Moche Portrait Vessel of a Lord

Reddish brown ceramic, open top, portrait vessel of a man wearing ear spools and a headdress with a puma head motif and two enormous front paws emerging from the sides. There are traces of spotted, beige slip decoration on the ear spools and spots on the headdress. This vessel is significantly larger than most portrait heads which average slightly more than half life-size, and it is in good condition. Portrait vessels play a significant role in Moche art as forerunners of a period of realism that followed them. It is believed that portraits were of powerful leaders, and that their presence in a grave signified an honor bestowed upon the deceased. A very similar portrait vessel is illustrated in "Ancient Peruvian Ceramics: The Nathan Cummings Collection," by Alan Sawyer (1996: pl: 37). Another, perhaps of the same person, is illustrated in "Moche Portraits from Ancient Peru" by Christopher Donnan (2004: fig.: 4.27).

Period: Peru, Moche IV, North Coast, c. AD 200 - 500

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height: 9 3/4"

Price Upon Request

96077

Peru, Moche Small Gold Male Condor Bead with Turquoise Eyes

This gold bead is identifiable as a male eagle by the caruncle on the beak. The beak itself is crated in a slightly reddish colored gold. It is made in two parts, expertly soldered. There are four suspension holes that allow for the bead to be hung upright. Ex Collection Benno Mattel, prior to 1970, by decent to his daughter Karin Ashburn.

Period: Peru, Moche, North Coast, c. AD 450 - 550

Media: Metal

Dimensions: Height: 3.3cm x Depth: 3.2cm x Weight:10.2 grams

$5,000

n8021

Peru, Moche Stirrup Spout Redware Vessel effigy vessel of a Tadpole

The tadpole is identified by the gullet under the mouth and long tail. This tadpole has highlights in buff slip over the eyes, on the gills on each side behind the eyes, on the nostrils, and under the mouth. The tadpole has human fingers and toes. This effigy is holds a large sphere to the chest and is crouches on a rectangular vessel. Very good condition. Cracks repaired at elbows.

Period: Peru, Moche I, North Coast, c. AD 100 - 300

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Length: 10" x Height: 8"

Price Upon Request

n2018

Peru, Nasca Bridgespout Vessel Painted with 23 Foxes On White Ground

A late Nasca period vessel, T/L tested, verified as 1650 years old by CIRAM Labs. Prof. Donald Proulx in his Sourcebook of Nasca Ceramic Iconography (pg. 141) describes the Andean Fox with the following characteristics, drawn in profile with elongated snout, pointed ears, whiskers and thick black tail. Deiter Eislab Illustrated 5 ceramics with similar painted foxes in ALTPERUANISCHE KULTUREN NAZCAII, plate 6-9.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height; 5 1/2" x Diameter: 6"

Price Upon Request

n4052

Peru, Nasca Headband with Orange Tie-dye Llama Hair

These unusual headbands are made of a cotton knotted mesh with shanks of llama hair tied into the knots. The inside does not show any of the shanks of hair.

Period: Peru, Nasca valley, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Diameter 7.5" x Height 4"

Condition: The colors are true without any fade.

Price Upon Request

p1040

Peru, Nasca Miniature Female Seated Figurine

This seated ceramic female has hands painted on her belly, black hair painted falling over the shoulders, white hair ornaments, and tattoos painted on each buttock. The intricate tattoos depict the San Pedro cactus, which is known to have psychoactive properties. The archaeological record indicates that San Pedro cactus was likely used by the ancient Andeans as a libation during shamanic ceremonies. This figurine would originally have been dressed in a miniature woven garment, which was eroded or lost over time. A similar figure is illustrated in A Sourcebook of Nasca Ceramic Iconography, p. 146. Ex. collection Jean Lions, France.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Length: 7.1cm

$1,800

M4049

Peru, Nasca Slit Tapestry Band with 8 Faces of The Proliferous Being on Red Ground

All eight faces are in the same orientation and alternate between two color arrangements: those with burgundy faces and those with red-orange faces. Each of the faces has a headdress with extensions, a mouth mask with extensions, and fingers holding a horizontal staff. One of the few Nasca tunics which depicts similar face bands and is same width is illustrated in TEIDOS MILENARIOS - ANCIENT PERUVIAN TEXTILES by Jose De Lavalle, page 264-5, ISBN# 9972-717-01-1.

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Lengtht: 45 1/2" x Width 6"

Price Upon Request

M6039

Peru, Nazca Border with 21 Abstract Feline Deities

A Nazca band decorated with seven abstract feline deities alternating in colors blue, yellow and maroon on red ground. The deities face upward, with hind legs and tails outlined in black. When the felines are rotates 90 degrees, they appear to be worms. A similar image is illustrated in Ancient Peruvian Textiles from the Collection of the Textile Museum, plate 17.

Period: Peru, Proto-Nasca, South Coast, c. 100 BC - AD 200

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length: 20" x Width: 7"

$1,800

94178a

Peru, Nazca Ceramic Bowl with puma head wearing a mouth mask

This large and colorful bowl is decorated with a feline type face wearing a fanged mouth mask with flaring whiskers. The nose, ears and chin are subtly raised. The forehead is decorated with a succession of chevron stripes and the back of the vessel is decorated with two series of semi-circular motifs floating on a band of warm dark brown. The shape of the vessel is globular and the color scheme is maroon, sienna, cream, tan and black. Trophy heads are represented with the most frequency on these vessels. With the exception of foxes, animal portrait masks are seldom represented on this type of vessel. Ceramic vessels with similar masked iconography are featured in "Nasca Geheimnisvolle Zeichen im Alten Peru," Museum Reitberg Zurich, 1999 (exhibition catalog).

Period: Peru, Nasca, South Coast, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 6 1/2" x Diameter 6 1/2"

Price Upon Request

97130

Peru, Nazca kilim-style border to tunic with alternating zig zags

The zig-zags on this border are separated by bold triangular fields with ivory, blue and orange on brown ground. This weaving is one of the vertical side borders to the tunic.

Period: Peru, Sihuas II, Southern Andes, circa 100-AD300AD

Media: Textile

Dimensions: Length 83" x Width 14 1/2"

$11,500

91091

Peru, Nazca lug handled vessel wearing a striped tunic

The figure is wearing a woven read headband and has a painted mustache with bird head decoration for his eyes. He is wearing a colorful stripped tunic with fringe, which is typical for Nazca weaving. This lug handle vessel was made for carrying Chicha or corn beer with a temp line passing through the lug handles so that it could be carried on a person's back.
A similar vessel wearing a tunic is illustrated in CATA PGP DE A CERA OCA MAZCA, by Concepcion Blasco Busqued, 1991, Madrid, pg 94.

Period: Peru, Nasca, c. AD 400 - 800

Media: Ceramic

Dimensions: Height 11" x Width 10"

Price Upon Request

n3042