Recuay Polychrome Vessel - Chief Head & Jaguars

**Originally Listed At $1400**

Pre-Columbian, Peru, northern highlands, Recuay culture, ca. 200 to 600 CE. An intricate, hand-built pottery vessel with a rounded base, a large apple-shaped body with a rounded shoulder, a tapering neck, a broad discoid rim, and a strap handle arching between rim and shoulder. A stylized head of a chief is centered atop the shoulder with large ear spools and an elaborate headdress with a cylindrical horn doubling as the spout. A pair of abstract jaguar heads protrudes from the shoulder - their black-painted faces covered in red spots, with the remainder of their two-dimensional bodies painted in black pigment within a red panel and atop a cream ground. Beneath the chief is a painted breastplate adorned with an abstract jaguar head encircled within a larger circular frame from which sprouts a quartet of serpentine figures. Wide spirals and linear motifs embellish the rim, neck, and verso and make this a fabulous example of fine Recuay artistry! Lucite display stand for photography purposes only. Size: 6.1" W x 7.5" H (15.5 cm x 19 cm).

Perhaps these are companion animals or pets of the figure. Groups in the highlands area of Ancash began to make fine pottery from kaolinate pastes, which are known to us today as the Recuay culture -- these are some of the most sophisticated ceramic traditions in Andean prehistory, as is obvious from the delicate sculptured artistry and intricate painting of this piece.

Provenance: private California, USA collection; ex-Arte Primitivo Gallery, New York, New York, USA; ex-private West Indies collection; ex-private New York, New York, USA collection, acquired prior to 1995

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#145827
Condition Report: Small areas of restoration to rim, spout, and waistline ridge, with light resurfacing and overpainting along new material and break lines. Minor abrasions to base, body, raised shoulder elements, and rim, with fading to original pigmentation, and light encrustations within some recessed areas. Nice earthen deposits throughout.