Moche Pottery Ai Apec / Warrior Stirrup Vessel
Pre-Columbian, North Coast of Peru, Moche V, ca. 600 to 800 CE. A classic Moche form, a ceramic stirrup vessel, with its body in the form of the Moche chief deity, Ai Apec, dressed as a standing warrior, the handle and spout projecting from the back. The god wears a short tunic and a cape as well as large, serpent-head-shaped earrings and a tumi headdress with a mask at its center and symmetrical wave motifs in white on its earthy red surface. He also has bulging eyes, a sharp, beak-like nose, and a mouth full of feline teeth - all hallmarks of the god, who harnessed the power of the sea and fierceness of land animals. In his hands he holds a large mace, and on one wrist he wears a square-shaped shield. Size: 5.35" W x 9.1" H (13.6 cm x 23.1 cm)
A vessel like this would have been created for a member of the elite and placed in their tomb as a grave offering to demonstrate their wealth as they began their journey into the afterlife. Moche V was a time period of social unrest, with radical changes and shifting urban centers, with the brief rise of the cities of Galindo in the Moche Valley and Pampa Grande in the Lambayeque Valley, but it is not clear what caused this unrest. Was it some environmental calamity? A plague? Bad leadership, invasion, or some other political explanation? The iconography of the vessel, with its martial theme, was perhaps painted for someone involved in these changing times.
Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-private T. Misenhimer collection, Beverly Hills, California, USA, collected from 1970 to 2008
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#152636 Dimensions: Condition Report: Expertly repaired and restored from multiple pieces, especially around the spout/handle. This is almost invisible. Nice deposits on the unrestored parts of the surface.
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Pre-Columbian, North Coast of Peru, Moche V, ca. 600 to 800 CE. A classic Moche form, a ceramic stirrup vessel, with its body in the form of the Moche chief deity, Ai Apec, dressed as a standing warrior, the handle and spout projecting from the back. The god wears a short tunic and a cape as well as large, serpent-head-shaped earrings and a tumi headdress with a mask at its center and symmetrical wave motifs in white on its earthy red surface. He also has bulging eyes, a sharp, beak-like nose, and a mouth full of feline teeth - all hallmarks of the god, who harnessed the power of the sea and fierceness of land animals. In his hands he holds a large mace, and on one wrist he wears a square-shaped shield. Size: 5.35" W x 9.1" H (13.6 cm x 23.1 cm)
A vessel like this would have been created for a member of the elite and placed in their tomb as a grave offering to demonstrate their wealth as they began their journey into the afterlife. Moche V was a time period of social unrest, with radical changes and shifting urban centers, with the brief rise of the cities of Galindo in the Moche Valley and Pampa Grande in the Lambayeque Valley, but it is not clear what caused this unrest. Was it some environmental calamity? A plague? Bad leadership, invasion, or some other political explanation? The iconography of the vessel, with its martial theme, was perhaps painted for someone involved in these changing times.
Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-private T. Misenhimer collection, Beverly Hills, California, USA, collected from 1970 to 2008
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#152636 Dimensions: Condition Report: Expertly repaired and restored from multiple pieces, especially around the spout/handle. This is almost invisible. Nice deposits on the unrestored parts of the surface.
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
