Pre-Columbian, Peru, Inca, ca. 1400 to 1500 CE. An intriguing blackware jar depicting a human head, perhaps a female, wearing a finely detailed knit cap accented by a slightly flared spout at its top. Her face is detailed with a protruded nose, a pair of almond-shaped eyes, and bulbous, bulging cheeks -indicative of a coca leaf chewer. For the Inca, the coca leaf was sacred and could only be consumed by the Inca nobility, though there were a few recognized exceptions. Due to its status, it was conservatively consumed following strict ritual practices. Her headpiece is accented with an intricate, raised, textile pattern. A beautifully preserved example with a lustrous highly burnished surface! Size: 4.3" Diameter x 6.75" H (10.9 cm x 17.1 cm)

Provenance: private Santa Clara collection, California, USA

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#164926

Surface wear commensurate with age. Softening to finer details, especially textile pattern on obverse headpiece. Otherwise in excellent condition with faint remains of original pigments. Fully intact.