Pre-Columbian, Peru, Chimu, ca. 1000 to 1200 CE. A silver kero or drinking vessel hammered into a beaker shape with a flat base and flaring sides with a handsome visage created in repousse embellishing it. The kero form was also created by Huari and Inca cultures as well as other parts of the ancient world. However, the ancients of Peru created these for more than domestic purposes. Rather they were used during life and after life at funerary ceremonies that incorporated intricate religious libations and imbibing rites. To create this piece, the ancient metalsmith hammered a silver piece into a very thin sheet, approximately the size of the finished work. Then the artisan used fine-grained stone anvils and hammer stones made of hematite or green porphyry, sometimes with animal hide attached, and a wooden template was used to create the form and its repoussé ornamentation, as the metalsmith hammered the silver sheet upon the wooden template. An elegant piece created by the ancients of the Andes. Size: 2.5" in diameter x 6" H (6.4 cm x 15.2 cm)

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; Ex-private Drimmer collection, Chicago, Illinois, USA, between 1950 to 1960

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.

#108996

No restoration. Has been cleaned and conserved. Remains of textile imprint where left to show original encrustation. Approximate price of conservation $ 1200.