Mochica Gilded Copper Crown of a Priestess

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Ancient / Ethnographic From Around the World

By Artemis Gallery

Jun 20, 2019

Set Reminder 2019-06-20 10:00:00 2019-06-20 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Ancient / Ethnographic From Around the World https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/ancient-ethnographic-from-around-the-world-4217
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• Lot Description
  Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Moche, ca. 100 to 300 CE. A precious gilded copper crown made from a band of gold with 32 shimmering circular danglers. These have been affixed to the periphery by having one end of a piece of golden wire punched through while the other end has been bent into a circular ring form for the gold discs to hang. This crown was created in the Frias style which is characterized by intricate goldwork techniques as well as objects that are covered in discs as we see here. Archaeological studies have revealed that Moche cities were governed by Warrior-Priest rulers and their societies included metalsmiths, farmers, weavers, potters, and fishermen. We know from examples of Moche pottery that these rulers oftentimes wore elaborate crowns; however, they are more often depicted in a crescent shape. This example is both early and quite important. Note the impressive number of gold gilded danglers. Size: 4.5" in diameter x .75" H (11.4 cm x 1.9 cm); 4.125" H (10.5 cm) on included custom stand. Precious metal content: 15% gold.
  
  It should be said that any goldwork from the Moche is exceedingly rare, as their treasures were targeted by plunderers during Colonial times. Heidi King of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York offers the following explanation in "The Art of Precolumbian Gold": "The Mochica or Moche as they are also known, built their capital in the dry, coastal valley of Moche, where the main construction was the Huaca del Sol, the so-called Pyramid of the Sun, the largest adobe structure built in Pre-Columbian South America. The great pyramid, made of over 143 million adobe bricks, was clearly visible and easily accessible during Colonial times, and it received extraordinary attentions from early treasure hunters (Bray this volume). As a result of such attentions, little of the wealth in precious metals that the Moche peoples are believed to have possessed remains in its ancient form today. Those works that do remain are all the more important because of their rarity." (The Art of Precolumbian Gold: The Jan Mitchell Collection" edited by Julie Jones. Boston: Little Brown & Company, 1985, p. 212)
  
  See a similar example at the Museo Oro del Peru, Lima that was featured in the exhibition "Gold and the Incas Lost Worlds of Peru" at the National Gallery of Australia (https://nga.gov.au/exhibition/INCAS/Default.cfm?IRN=227510&MnuID=3&ViewID=2).
  
  Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-Fred Leighton and Alexander Alcevedo collection, New York, New York, USA
  
  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.
  
  We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
  
  #144350

  Condition

  Just a few missing danglers. Minor surface wear and bending to form. Otherwise quite excellent!
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