Lot 36F
Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Chancay, ca. 800 to 1200 CE. A tall standing bichrome pottery female cuchimilco (or star-gazer). The figure has small and perky breasts, exaggerated genitalia, and outstretched arms with bent elbows and stylized fingers. The broad, flat face is dominated by areas of applied black pigmentation, possibly indicative of tattooing, with coffee-bean-shaped eyes, semicircular ears with disc-shaped earspools, and a large, triangular nose which juts out from between the eyes. The head is squared off and perforated in four areas, with a painted headband comprised of straight and undulating linear motifs. The body exhibits dark-hued tattooing marks similar to those on the face, with striped bands across the legs and solid lines across the chest and thighs. This stunning demonstration of pottery artistry exemplifies the artistic prowess of the Chancay culture. Size: 10.875" W x 14" H (27.6 cm x 35.6 cm).
The Chancay people were exceptional ceramic and textile artisans, and archaeologists have often found cuchimilcos in the tombs of Chancay nobility. Some scholars believe that their outstretched hands were intended to absorb negative energy. Chancay artisans created ceramics that are quite distinctive in form and decoration - finely painted and molded with specific decorative details carefully added by hand. The function of cuchimilco sculptures is still unknown, but they may have been placed in tombs as companions or guardians of the deceased.
Provenance: private Haiku, Hawaii, USA collection; ex-Baker collection, New Mexico, USA
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#129692
- Condition: Repaired from several pieces. Head reattached to neck with some restoration, resurfacing, and overpainting. Tip of one foot and part of one hand restored, with resurfacing and overpainting to large areas of abdomen and head. Age-commensurate surface wear, fading and slight discoloration to pigmentation, small chips to toes, hands, and head, with nice mineral deposits throughout.
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