Lot 122C
Pre-Columbian, Peru, Paracas culture, ca. 500 to 100 BCE. A camelid bone spatula, carved to be flat, with a finial in the form of an abstract eagle's head. Incised lines give the eagle his features, including a huge eye with a tiny pupil and parallel wavy/spiked lines that form feather/mountain motifs on his body. Crosshatched lines and diamond patterns are incised beneath the eagle. This spatula was used for extracting lime from a container as part of the elaborate shamanic ritual of ingesting hallucinogenic drugs. Comes with custom stand. Size: 1.5" W x 11.5" H (3.8 cm x 29.2 cm)
Ancient Peruvian iconography often focuses on powerful predator animals: jaguars, caimans, and eagles like this one. In eagle depictions, the eyes and the beak are often emphasized, focusing on the tools that the predator uses in the hunt. Why focus on these attributes? Some scholars believe that, as with the jaguar, images of the eagle were an aesthetic response to the mingled terror - this animal could kill a man - and admiration - this animal dominated its landscape - that ancient people must have felt.
Provenance: ex-private Hans Juergen Westermann collection, Germany, collected in 1950 to the 1960s
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#123904
- Condition: Gorgeous patina on bone from age and handling.
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