Pre-Columbian, Peru, Chimu, ca. 1100 to 1470 CE. A collection of bird ornaments, made to be sewn onto clothing, and a semicircle, torc-like necklace, all made of mined silver (which will have some slight copper content in it due to the imperfections of the Chimu mining process, giving it the slight green patina). The ornaments are stylized, with fine stamped details giving texture to wings and heads, appearing to show birds from either above or below as they are in flight, with wide, fanned tails and spread wings. From excavations of workshops at Chan Chan, the Chimu capital, it seems likely that Chimu artisans were specialized enough that an individual would take care of each process, so one person would be responsible for hammering while another was responsible for shaping, etc. This means that elites in the society - nobility and royalty - would have been driving a specialized economy with their demands for finery. Picture a member of the elite wearing a shirt covered in bird ornaments like this that flashed and jangled in the sunlight - it must have been a showy, magnificent sight! Mounted onto custom backing. Size of birds on average: 1" W x 1.8" H (2.5 cm x 4.6 cm); size of backing: Size: 14" W x 11.1" H (35.6 cm x 28.2 cm)

Provenance: Ex-P. Haig collection, Santa Fe, New Mexico

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#116830

Slight copper patina (explained above) on the pieces with excellent form.