Native American, Southeast or Midwestern United States, Mississippian, ca. 900 to 1543 CE. A collection of 7 pottery head fragments in the form of stylized birds and fish that once adorned the rims of vessels, functioning as handles, effigies, and one that contains a clapper ball inside functions as a rattle. Six display beaks and crested heads, some with incised or applied eyes - likely ducks which were symbolic beings that could move across realms: in the air, on the ground, and diving underwater. The seventh head resembles a fish with a bulging eye and puckered lips. Size of largest: 2.5" L x 0.6" W (6.4 cm x 1.5 cm)

Provenance: private Kansas City, Missouri, USA collection, ex-John Townsend collection, formed in the 1970s and earlier.

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#162032

Fragments of larger vessels or effigies as shown. Chips and abrasions to each, but most facial details are preserved. The L-shaped gray head contains a rattle ball and still emits sound.