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THBVeraguas Gold Double-Headed Avian Pendant - 42.8 g
Lot 142b
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:
$15,000 - $20,000
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About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
May 23, 2019
Set Reminder
2019-05-23 10:00:00
2019-05-23 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Exceptional Day 2 Ethnographic Tribal Fossils
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-day-2-ethnographic-tribal-fossils-4136
Day 2 of an important 2-day auction featuring exceptional ethnographic art from around the world. Today's sale will feature Pre-Columbian from the ancient americas, Native American, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Spanish Colonial, and incredible Fossils. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
Day 2 of an important 2-day auction featuring exceptional ethnographic art from around the world. Today's sale will feature Pre-Columbian from the ancient americas, Native American, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Spanish Colonial, and incredible Fossils. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (194)
- Lot Description
Pre-Columbian, Central America, Panama, Veraguas culture / Grand Chiriqui Period V-VI, ca. 800 to 1500 CE. A huge gold (85% pure, equivalent to 20K+) pendant in the form of a double-headed bird. Its tail feathers and wings are broad and flat, spread out below and to either side of the raised bodies and heads of the twin birds. Each bird's head is ornate, with bulging eyes and a large crest along their long, wide beaks. With two loops on the undersides of the beaks to make it wearable. Size: 4.5" W x 2.25" H (11.4 cm x 5.7 cm); 4.35" H (11 cm) on included custom stand; gold is 82% pure, with 14% copper and 3% silver. Total weight: 42.8 grams
According to "The Art of Pre-Columbian Gold: the Jan Mitchell Collection" catalogue, "Isthmian bird-form pendants were first called 'eagles,' aguilas, when Christopher Columbus sailed along Caribbean Central America in the early 1500s. Columbus and his men saw the bird pendants being worn about the neck by the peoples of the coast, in the manner of 'an Agnus Dei or other relic' (Colon, 1959). They named the pendants aguilas, a name they have kept to this day. In the present century, the generalized avian form of the pendants has given rise to much discussion over which type of bird is represented (see Cooke & Bray, this catalogue). Some authorities believe that the pendants depict birds of prey, thereby endorsing the Spanish name. The prominence of beaks and claws, and the various items held in their beaks, support such a view. . . Veraguas eagles are sharp-edged and clean of outline, particularly when compared to those of Chiriqui style with their rounded contours. Wings and tail are worked more laterally . . . Veraguas eagles are also often more elaborated around the head and hold fewer things in their beaks." (Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1985, p. 112).
Columbus's expedition to the area - his last to the New World - included contact with the Veraguas, who, according to his records, embalmed their dead and bedecked them in gold finery. He traveled with a local guide to the furthest west port of their territory, where he encountered twenty canoes manned by people wearing nothing but gold plates and a gold eagle. Fascinatingly, what most struck Columbus and his men was that these gold ornaments were worn by nearly everyone amongst the Veraguas - the leader was dressed like everyone else! Indeed, what most impressed Ferdinand Columbus, the explorer's son who had accompanied him on the mission, was the number of wives that the leader had, apparently the true indication of wealth in that society.
Provenance: ex-Howard Rose Gallery, 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.
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#145137Small losses to edges of tail feathers. Light patina on surface. One of the birds' heads is slightly bent. Otherwise in beautiful condition.Condition
- Shipping Info
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