Pre-Columbian, north coast of Peru, Sican/Lambayeque culture, ca. 750 to 1370 CE. A fine silver vessel of a bulbous circular shape displaying a nice patina with textile imprints scattered throughout. Its exterior bares a lustrous sheen, and its interior cavity is an earthy, matted texture. The cup has a weighted feel and is also more appropriately referred to as a kero - a vessel commonly used for the consumption of chicha. People used these keros to consume the fermented drink crucial to religious and burial rites as well as ritual celebrations around planting and harvest time. Chicha was made from maize, quinoa, or squash, with a local alcohol content and fermented through the use of saliva - women chewed the food and then boiled it in water, leaving the enzymes from their mouths to produce the malt for fermentation. Size: 3.25" Diameter x 3.5" H (8.3 cm x 8.9 cm); quality of silver: 70%; total weight: 110.0 grams

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-private Hans Juergen Westermann collection, Germany, collected from 1950 to 1960s

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#164511

Intact and in excellent condition. Nice patina with textile imprints and signs of aging scattered throughout.