Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Moche, Phase IV, ca. 400 to 700 CE. A beautiful vessel of a spherical form with a flat base, hand-built from pottery and presented with fine burnishing marks. The rounded, cream-slipped body is decorated in russet-hued pigment with a tall tree bearing four lengthy branches, each bedecked with hanging phytomorphic forms like peppers or fruits, and two petite rodents scamper across with ears of corn on their backs. A raised band with painted chevron motifs encircles the base of the cylindrical spout. A single simian creature is featured on one side with its arms grasping the spout, its feet planted firmly on the shoulder, and its arched back constituting the handle of the vessel. A rare and intriguing example of high-quality Moche fineline pottery! Size: 6.2" W x 10.125" H (15.7 cm x 25.7 cm).
For a stylistically similar example of the rodent motif, please see: Donnan, Christopher B. and Donna McClelland. "Moche Fineline Painting: Its Evolution and Its Artists." University of Washington Press, 2002, p. 110, fig. c.
Provenance: private Copeland collection, Boulder, Colorado, USA, acquired before 1990
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#151028
Condition
Repair to midsection of handle, with light resurfacing along break lines that does not detract from the overall presentation. Light abrasions to handle, spout, body, and base, with light fading to pigmentation. Light earthen deposits throughout and fantastic manganese deposits across body.