Lot 99
Pre-Columbian, Panama, Chiriqui culture, ca. 300 to 1500 CE. A dazzling amulet in the form of 2 birds, likely eagles, joined via a horizontal bar and a widely-spread, shared tail, all cast from 74.35 to 91% gold - up to 21.8 karats! Each avian presents nearly identically with a long, curved beak, bulging, annular eyes, coiled ears, and an open mouth beneath a pair of prominent horns. Both bend their legs at the knee, each toe of their talons delineated and curled, while petite tails are shown below. Their versos boast intricate scrolling and spiral patterns, as well as 2 suspension loops for wear as a pendant. Size: 4.8" L x 1.4" W x 3.3" H (12.2 cm x 3.6 cm x 8.4 cm); gold quality: 74.3 to 91.04% (17.8 to 21.8 karats); weight: 199.2 grams
Winged pendants, or avian pendants, were among the most popular forms of gold ornaments. Clusters of such pendants, found in a single burial, suggested that an individual may have worn several at a time. Early photographs from this area underscore this grouping of ornaments. In one example, a chief wears a necklace with several avian pendants suspended from a single cord, a magnificent display of a veritable flock of pendants on his chest.
The bird-form pendants of Central America are perhaps the best known type of Pre-Columbian gold object. Made to be worn suspended around the neck, they were fabricated in many sizes, from those that are less than an inch in height to others of more than five inches. While the pendants differ in specific details, the basic configuration is usually the same. They have extended wings over open, splayed tails and heads and beaks that project strongly forward. Single birds are the most common, although double images, like this one, also occur. These pendants are considered to be stylized representations of birds of prey often holding small objects in their prominent beaks. The pendants may have functioned as protective emblems.
According to "The Art of Pre-Columbian Gold: the Jan Mitchell Collection" catalogue, "Isthmian bird-form pendants were first called 'eagles,' aguilas, when Christopher Columbus sailed along Caribbean Central America in the early 1500s. Columbus and his men saw the bird pendants being worn about the neck by the peoples of the coast, in the manner of 'an Agnus Dei or other relic' (Colon, 1959). They named the pendants aguilas, a name they have kept to this day. In the present century, the generalized avian form of the pendants has given rise to much discussion over which type of bird is represented (see Cooke & Bray, this catalogue). Some authorities believe that the pendants depict birds of prey, thereby endorsing the Spanish name. The prominence of beaks and claws, and the various items held in their beaks, support such a view. . . Veraguas eagles are sharp-edged and clean of outline, particularly when compared to those of Chiriqui style with their rounded contours. Wings and tail are worked more laterally . . . Veraguas eagles are also often more elaborated around the head and hold fewer things in their beaks." (Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1985, p. 112).
Provenance: private Parker, Colorado, USA collection; ex-Peyton Wright Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA; ex-Don Tharpe collection, Midland, Virginia, USA, 2005; ex-Gary Herndershott collection, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA, 2003 - 2004
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#190154
- Condition: Professionally repaired with restoration over some visible break lines. Loss to tip of left bird's left horn. Age-commensurate nicks and pitting to surface. Otherwise, nice presentation with light earthen deposits, nice remaining detail, and great luster to gold. Wearable as a pendant.
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