Description:

Pre-Columbian, Peru (south coast) or Chile, Proto-Nazca culture, ca. 500 BCE to 1 BCE. A long, cylindrical wooden tube made for inhaling snuff. A wooden rod capped by a rounded handle is in one end of the tube. The form of the upper part of the tube - the part nearest the rod handle - is that of an abstract sea turtle, with charming small feet jutting out from the sides. Size: 1.5" W x 5.5" H (3.8 cm x 14 cm)

This item represents the drug paraphernalia employed by many people in the Atacama Desert region of ancient Chile. Wooden inhalation tubes like this one are found in burials alongside trays for spreading powder, spatulas, mortars and pestles, and other items for the ingestion of snuff. The 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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#123554

  • Condition: Patina from age/wear on the wood surface.

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

Artemis Fine Arts

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