Stirrup-spout bottle

Dateca. 1300-1470

MediumBlackware

Dimensions10 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches (26 x 13.3 cm)

CultureChimu (Peru)

PeriodLate Intermediate Period

ClassificationsCeramics

Credit LineTransferred from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology

Terms

Perú
Ceramics
Chimu
Blackware
Animals

Object number56.163

Label CopyThis Chimú burnished blackware stirrup-spout bottle has a mold-pressed decoration on the vessel body consisting of a round circle of dots surrounding a zoomorphic motif. The creature appears to be a fox, surmounted by the crescent-shaped headdress which served as an indicator of high status in both the Sicán and Chimú cultures of the Peruvian north coast. Foxes (Dusicyon culpaeus) are small predators, still found in the Andes. They are often associated with agriculture. During Inca times, fox-skin headdresses were worn by people guarding the agricultural fields.

Collections