Chimu Blackware Stirrup Vessel w/ Bird Spout

Pre-Columbian, Central Coast Peru, Chimu, ca. 1100 to 1470 CE. A hand-built and highly burnished blackware pottery vessel with a pair of conjoined globular vessels, a pair of cylindrical spouts bridged by a stirrup-shaped handle, and a stylized avian head topping one spout. The spherical bird head displays a protruding conical beak with an openwork mouth, a pair of petite nostrils, and bulging bullseye-style eyes, and the body below features a crested chest flanked by a pair of folded wings. The hollow nature of the bird head suggests this was a whistling vessel at one time, however the whistle no longer functions. Size: 8" L x 3.7" W x 6.1" H (20.3 cm x 9.4 cm x 15.5 cm)

Provenance: private Copeland collection, Boulder, Colorado, USA, acquired before 1990

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#151023 Dimensions: Condition Report: Minor nicks and abrasions to base, spout rims, both body chambers, handle, and bird head, with one stable hairline fissure across handle, and minor fading to areas of original black color. Great remaining avian details on bird head, and nice original black pigment throughout. Original whistle no longer functions.