Pre-Columbian Chancay 'Cuchimilco'
- Item No.
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Item Details
- Width:
3 1/2" Inches - Height:
5" Inches - Period:
Pre-18th Century - Origin:
America
This diminutive Chancay figure displays black pigment against a buff and white slip in traditional Chancay fashion. Called "cuchimilco" these petite statuettes figure prominently in the Chancay artistic oeuvre. Often the "cuchimilco" are depicted with their arms spread. This has been interpreted by some scholars as a gesture to ward off evil spirits. These figures were mostly found in the tombs of Chancay elite and were almost certainly used as protective amulets. Often excavated as pairs, the Cuchimilcos were intended to represent the dualities and synchronicity of the male-female ancestral couple representing divine duality. This figure is shown with body and facial adornments around the eyes and mouth, and a coiffure and armbands.
The Chancay culture reigned 1200-1470 A.D. in the valleys of Chancay and Chillon on the middle coast of Peru. In the early 15th century the Chimú state conquered parts of the southern Chancay area, and in the year 1450 the Incas occupied both areas. Chancay ceramics are made with a mold, matt-surfaced, and almost without exception white and black.
Circa, 1200-1470 AD
3 1/2" wide x 5" high
The Chancay culture reigned 1200-1470 A.D. in the valleys of Chancay and Chillon on the middle coast of Peru. In the early 15th century the Chimú state conquered parts of the southern Chancay area, and in the year 1450 the Incas occupied both areas. Chancay ceramics are made with a mold, matt-surfaced, and almost without exception white and black.
Circa, 1200-1470 AD
3 1/2" wide x 5" high
