Chimu Inca Blackware Vessel Sea Lion, ex-Harmer Rooke

Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Chimu/Inca culture, ca. 1200 to 1500 CE. A beautiful mold-formed blackware pottery vessel of a bulbous form, depicting an abstract marine mammal, perhaps a sea lion. The gourd-shaped body bears a conical tail, a quartet of petite limbs, and a flared spout projecting from the back. The tapered head features almond-shaped eyes, several incised striations across the face, a rounded nose, and zigzagging teeth bared between thin lips. The highly burnished surfaces exhibit a pleasing lustrous quality that gives the piece an attractive nature. Size: 6.7" W x 7.25" H (17 cm x 18.4 cm).

Provenance: ex-private Howard Rose Gallery, New York, New York, USA; ex-Robert and Marianne Huber, New York and Illinois, USA, acquired in 1984; ex-Harmer Rooke Galleries, New York, New York, USA, MB auction (March 30, 1984, lot 74).

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#149983 Dimensions: Condition Report: Spout reattached to body, with restoration and light adhesive residue along break lines. Minor abrasions to body, head, and limbs, with a couple of stable hairline fissures around legs, and areas of fading to original pigmentation. Nice lustrous surfaces throughout.