Description:

Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Chimu culture, ca. 1000 CE. These gold ear spools are impressive for their scale and fine technical display as well as their intriguing iconography. The artisan painstakingly delineated imagery of a victorious Chimu lord gripping both a tumi and a cut off trophy head in each of his clutches on each ear spool. Chimu leaders broadcast their status and power by donning fanciful attire such as ornate headdresses and precious jewelry. Impressive gold ear spools like these would only have been worn by the elite rulers of their civilization. Although gold was not favored as currency, it was treasured for its symbolic meaning. The Chimu believed it was associated with the sun and thereby spiritually powerful. What's more they believed that their rulers were living representatives of the gods. So an esteemed ruler would have worn these ear spools on his distended earlobes. The intricate and highly symbolic imagery of these ear spools reflects the authority and nobility of the individual for whom they were created. Custom, museum-quality stand included. 1-3/4"D x 3-1/4"L each

Provenance: Ex-Arundel Collection, CA, collected 1950s-1960s

All items in this auction are legal to buy/sell under U.S. statute covering cultural patrimony per United States Code 2600, CHAPTER 14 -- CONVENTION ON CULTURAL PROPERTY, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

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  • Condition: Near choice if not choice condition!

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June 13, 2014 9:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,000
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $25,000