Vessel in the Form of a Camelid
Date1450-1550 CE
Mediumceramic
Dimensions16.5 x 12.4 cm (6 1/2 x 4 7/8 in.)
ClassificationsCeramics
Credit LineGift of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur A. Cohen
Object number1959.33
Label TextCamelids (llamas, alpacas, and related animals) were essential to life in the ancient Andes. They provided wool, hide, meat, transportation, fuel, and were also instrumental to many Andean rituals. Unlike the nearby conopa in the form of an alpaca (1951.120), this camelid has short hair and can thus be identified as a llama or a guanaco, its wild cousin. Chimú potters made camelid-shaped vessels before the Chimú Empire was conquered by the Inca. Here, however, the opening of the ceramic indicates that it was created during the Chimú-Inca period: the single spout with a flaring or flattened top is characteristic of the interaction between the Chimú and Inca.ProvenanceMr. and Mrs. Arthur A. Cohen, NY,NYOn View
Not on view
about 1000