Lot 50R
Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Moche, Phase I, ca. 300 to 100 BCE. A bichrome Moche Decapitator God (one of the most important guises of Ai Apaec, the primary deity of the Moche) vessel depicting a ferocious half-human, half-jaguar mythological being with a bloodthirsty open mouth presenting four sharp fangs and a wagging tongue, flaring nostrils, a spike covered head, and large, boldly delineated eyes projecting a fierce countenance. He holds a tumi or ritual sacrificial knife in his left hand and the head of his latest victim in his right. At the peak of the Moche societal heirarchy warrior-priests reigned supreme. These men presided over sacrificial rituals in which prisoners of war were decapitated and dismembered. Following this ceremony the victim's blood was voraciously imbibed. Although the Moche were an illiterate culture, their art provides valuable information about this society that existed prior to Inca expansion, including not only its advanced pottery techniques and metalwork, but also its intriguing political and cultural practices as we see revealed in this piece. A fabulous example of an early Moche I effigy stirrup vessel with one of the fiercest representations of Ai Apaec as The Decapitator God we've ever seen! Size: 7" L x 6.25" W x 7.25" H (17.8 cm x 15.9 cm x 18.4 cm)
A similar example was recently featured in "Moche Art from Ancient Peru. Gold, Myths and Rituals" at CaixaForum in Barcelona, Spain, March 5 - June 7, 2015. The Decapitator God was also famously depicted in a painted stucco mural of the ceremonial patio of Huaca de la Luna (Shrine of the Moon), La Libertad, Peru.
Provenance: Ex-California Museum of Ancient Art
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#115243
- Condition: Missing a spike or two. Otherwise expected surface wear with minor paint loss and abrasions as shown.
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