Description:

Pre-Columbian, Peru (south coast) or Chile, Proto-Nazca culture, ca. 500 BCE to 1 BCE. A wooden spoon with an anthropomorphic figure on its handle, used for scooping ground powder to aid in the ingestion of hallucinogenic drugs. The figure is shown seated, arms raised, with the eyes inlaid with gorgeous sky blue turquoise disks. Size: 6.5" L x 1" W (16.5 cm x 2.5 cm)

This item was part of the drug paraphernalia employed by many people in the Atacama Desert region of ancient Chile. Wooden spoons like this one are found in burials alongside trays for spreading powder, inhalation tubes, spatulas, mortars and pestles, and other items for the ingestion of snuff. The snuff mixture, prepared from resin, leaves, and ground seeds, was used in part to induce a hallucinogenic state for shamanic ritual.

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-Westermann collection, Germany

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#123561

  • Condition: Patina from touch/wear on wood.

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May 25, 2017 8:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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