Matched Pair of Nazca Polychrome Keros w/ Trophy Heads

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Fine Antiquities, Ethnographic & Fine Art

By Artemis Gallery

Dec 3, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-12-03 10:00:00 2020-12-03 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Fine Antiquities, Ethnographic & Fine Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/fine-antiquities-ethnographic-fine-art-6119
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• Lot Description
  Pre-Columbian, South Coast Peru, Nazca culture, ca. 100 to 400 CE. A fascinating matched pair of polychrome keros (drinking vessels) with polychrome motifs and anthropomorphic faces. The keros rest on slightly rounded but stable bases with tall walls that rise upward and flare slightly outward at the rim. The exterior is painted with an interlacing motif in beige white, orange, and plum tones. The face is situated near the base with a protruding nose and a surprised expression with painted tattoos on the cheeks. These keros were used for drinking the fermented maize beer known as chicha in ritual ceremonies or when establishing an agreement. In Nazca culture - and other ancient Peruvian cultures - the decapitation and ritual use of human heads was common practice; many mythical figures and kings known from Nazca pottery are shown holding trophy heads or in the presence of trophy heads. Drinking from these keros would certainly be proud display of past victories! Size: 4.25" W x 6" H (10.8 cm x 15.2 cm)
  
  These keros would have been used to give an offering of chicha (corn beer) in a grave, where the vast majority of known Nazca pottery has been found. In ancient Peru, corn was not the staple food stuff that it was in Mesoamerica; instead, it seems to have mainly been used to make chicha and, possibly, a stronger hallucinogenic brew when combined with cactus juice. The Nazca linked trophy heads with corn - sometimes even portraying exposed ears of corn as trophy heads - because they believed that the taking of heads provided the necessary supernatural power to allow agricultural crops to grow. Archaeological evidence from the 20th century shows that the stylized trophy head form so common to Nazca artwork was based on real rituals. Over one hundred mummified trophy heads have been found from Nazca excavations, almost all with a puncture to the front of the skull for suspension. Archaeologists specializing this culture continue to argue over the significance of these heads in Nazca culture. The artwork here is an intriguing reminder of this ancient culture.
  
  Provenance: private Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA collection; ex-Mary Bert Gutman collection, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, acquired in the 1950s
  
  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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  #160990

  Condition

  Nicks and chips to rim. Abrasions to surfaces and noses, with fading of pigment in some areas. Magnesium deposits and vibrant pigments.
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