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THBParacas / Proto Nazca Gold Crown w/ Hummingbirds
About Seller
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
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About Auction
LiveJun 27, 2024
Classical antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art from cultures encompassing the globe. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (206)
- Lot Description
Pre-Columbian, South Coast of Peru, late Paracas or early Nazca, ca. 200 BCE to 400 CE. A breathtaking find - a forehead ornament hammered from a thin sheet of over 19 karat gold in the form of a tumi, topped by a pair of wooden hummingbirds with golden wings, beaks, and eyes and remains of colorful feathers on their bodies. The crown is flared at each end with a narrow mid-section and a surface covered in rows of raised dots with liberal remains of red pigment. Size: 10.9" Diameter x 5.5" H (27.7 cm x 14 cm); 11.9" H (30.2 cm) on included custom stand; metal quality: 82% gold (equivalent to over 19 karats), 15% silver, 2.8% copper; weight: 20.9 grams
To the ancients of the Pre-Columbian world, hummingbirds were associated with the sun. Appreciated for their shiny, iridescent feathering and aerial acrobatics, hummingbirds made for ideal solar metaphors. Since these birds are known to hover, seemingly motionless, and fly up, down and even backwards, the ancients likened their motions to that of the sun's hovering in the sky at the solstices when it is also known to reverse its celestial direction. In addition, hummingbirds can assume a torpid state when it is cold at night or during brief periods in the winter. However, they come back to life in the spring warmth. This unique ability to "die" and "resurrect" signified rebirth to the ancients of the Americas, precisely at a time when planting and, in this sense, "renewed life" occurred. How magical!
Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection, acquired from 2000 to 2010; ex-H.J. Westermann Collection, Germany, collected 1950s to 60s
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.
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#185189Condition
Small areas of professional repair to lower right corner and beneath right hummingbird. Some minor chips to edges as well as wrinkles and indentations to surface. Otherwise, very nice with clear decoration and liberal remains of red pigment and feathers. Patina to wood and clear decoration on gold.
- Shipping Info
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