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THBEnormous Inca Silver Portrait Kero / Drinking Vessel
Lot 42
About Seller
Artemis Gallery
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$4,000 - $6,000
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|---|---|
| $0 | $25 |
| $300 | $50 |
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| $2,000 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 | $20,000 |
About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
Oct 3, 2019
Set Reminder
2019-10-03 10:00:00
2019-10-03 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Exceptional Day 2: Pre-Columbian & Tribal Art
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-day-2-pre-columbian-tribal-art-4453
Day 2 of an important 2-day auction featuring exceptional, museum-worthy examples of Pre-Columbian from the ancient Americas, Native American, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Spanish Colonial and fossils. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
Day 2 of an important 2-day auction featuring exceptional, museum-worthy examples of Pre-Columbian from the ancient Americas, Native American, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Spanish Colonial and fossils. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (300)
- Lot Description
Pre-Columbian, Peru, Inca, ca. 1300 to 1500 CE. A huge silver kero or drinking vessel comprised of high quality (92%) silver, hammer-molded to form a drinking cup depicting a stylized human/bird head with skillfully delineated bold repousse facial features, ornaments, and coiffure. He wears a substantial headdress comprised of a cross-hatched headband rising to a dramatically flared headdress and large ear ornaments. The face presents strikingly large, heavy lidded almond-shaped eyes, a pronounced beak/nose, and downcurved lips. Given how he is elaborately decorated with ear ornaments and headdress, he most likely represented an elite individual. An impressive royal drinking vessel that was clearly used for more than ordinary domestic purposes. Rather, vessels like this one were used during life by royalty and after life at funerary ceremonies that incorporated intricate religious libations and imbibing rites. Size: 6.75" in diameter at the base x 16" H (17.1 cm x 40.6 cm); Silver quality: 92%.
The kero form was also created by Huari and Inca cultures as well as other peoples of the ancient world. However, the indigenous of Peru created these for more than domestic purposes. Rather they were used during life and after life at funerary ceremonies that incorporated intricate religious libations and imbibing rites. To create this piece, the ancient metalsmith hammered a silver piece into a very thin sheet, approximately the size of the finished work. Then the artisan used fine-grained stone anvils and hammer stones made of hematite or green porphyry, sometimes with animal hide attached, and a wooden template was used to create the form and its repousse ornamentation, as the metalsmith hammered the silver sheet upon the wooden template. An elegant royal Inca silver kero, comprised of high quality silver that would have belonged to a king or noble and/or would have been used at sacred funerary rites.
Provenance: ex Merrin Gallery; ex West Coast collection, 1980s
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
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#148155Expected age wear with some denting as shown, but overall form and detail are well preserved. Minute pressure fissures to periphery of base and a few pressure fissures to area below headband, though difficult to see. Encrusted deposits on interior. Black pigment remaining on eyes. Nice patina from age and handling.Condition
- Shipping Info
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