Chavin Pottery Bottle w/ Incised Jaguar Fangs

Pre-Columbian, central/northern coast Peru, Chavin de Huantar, Chavin culture, ca. 900 to 200 BCE. A hand-built pottery bottle of a wonderful and sizable form with a flat base, an apple-shaped body with a rounded shoulder, and a corseted spout with a thick rim. The highly burnished vessel is presented in red-brown slip, and the body boasts four incised, cream-hued jaguar mandibles with rounded teeth and a singular pointed fang. The Chavin people held the jaguar in a position of high spiritual reverence as it was the penultimate symbol of power and might throughout the ancient New World. Shamans, warriors, hunters, and rulers alike associated themselves with the king of Pre-Columbian beasts. Size: 6.2" W x 9.875" H (15.7 cm x 25.1 cm)

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-private Hans Juergen Westermann collection, Germany, collected from the 1950 to the 1960s

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#152629 Dimensions: Condition Report: Professional restoration to areas of base and spout, with resurfacing and overpainting along new material and break lines. Minor abrasions to base, body, and spout, with minor softening to some incised details, and minor fading to original pigmentation. Nice traces of original incised details across body. Old inventory label beneath base.