**First Time At Auction**

Pre-Columbian, northern Peru, Chavin, ca. 900 to 500 BCE. A rare and remarkable stone head resembling the tenon heads cabezas clavas of the monumental Chavin temple complex that document the shamanic transformation of a human into supernatural animal spirits. The stylized visage displays wide, bulging eyes beneath arching brows that extend around the sides of the face, a bulbous, zoomorphic nose, and a huge smiling mouth, held slightly open to expose a row of protruding fangs, all crowned by a knob at the top of the head. The nose and fangs of this shaman seem to resemble a feline representing earthly power. Size: 4.4" W x 4.9" H (11.2 cm x 12.4 cm); 8.9" H (22.6 cm) on included custom stand.

The Chavin people lived in the northern Highland Andes, and their capital, Chavin de Huantar, is an UNESCO World Heritage Site. The artwork of Chavin represents the first widespread style in the Andes. The center of Chavin de Huantar is a massive, flat-topped pyramid, surrounded by lower platforms. Between 1200 and 500 BCE the pyramid space was used for religious ceremonies. The Old Temple, constructed very early in the history of the site, consists of a series of passageways built around a circular courtyard; within were carved stone monuments showing jaguars, serpents, and other figures with transformative and/or anthropomorphic features. At the very center is a towering stone stela depicting an anthropomorphic figure with a jaguar head and a human body, believed to be Lanzon, the chief deity of Chavin. Researchers believe that worshippers ingested hallucinogenic drugs and then were led in the dark through the labyrinthine passageways before entering the central courtyard and coming abruptly face-to-face with the snarling features of the god.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-private Orlando, Florida, USA collection, acquired in May 2023; ex-Artemis Gallery, Louisville, Colorado, USA, acquired in February 2023; ex-private Orlando, Florida, USA collection, aquired via Arte Primitivo, New York, New York, USA, September 28, 2022, Auction #107, lot 209; ex-collection of a New York City Physician, New York, USA; ex-New York, New York, USA collection

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#184756

Expected surface wear as shown, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, intact and excellent with nice remaining detail. Arte Primitivo label on underside.