5 Valdivian Stone Votive Axe Heads, Museum-Exhibited

**Originally Listed At $400**

Pre-Columbian, Ecuador, Valdivian / Shillacoto-Wairajirca culture, ca. 1800 to 1500 BCE. A fine group of 5 miniature votive hand axe heads carved from mottled stone of either forest-green, sage-green, or yellow-green hues. Two of the tools have simple blade like forms with flat bottoms and rounded tips, another pair are shaped into waisted forms with lateral projections, and the largest has tiny lugs or tabs on one end. These miniature axes were modeled after utilitarian tools, but the size, condition, and naturally beautiful material indicate these were ceremonial, perhaps intended for burial or to wear like a pendant to symbolize the power of the bearer - a cord could easily be lashed around the tabs on 3 for suspension. Size of broadest axe: 1.75" L x 1.3" W (4.4 cm x 3.3 cm)

Exhibited in "Artifacts of Ecuador: Collection of Col. William R. Cameron (Ret.), Monterey Peninsula Museum of Art, January 8 to 29, 1977.

Provenance: private Everett, Massachusetts, USA collection, purchased from Artemis Gallery, July 1, 2019, lot 51a; ex-private California, USA collection, acquired in 2004; ex-private Gill family collection, Pebble Beach, California, USA, acquired in 1980; ex- Colonel William R. Cameron (ret.) collection, California, USA, acquired in 1965 to 1968; exhibited in "Artifacts of Ecuador: Collection of Col. William R. Cameron (Ret.), Monterey Peninsula Museum of Art, January 8 to 29, 1977

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#183428
Condition Report: Two have old losses to bodies. All items have minor nicks and abrasions. Light mineral encrustations in the abraded and lost areas.