Pre-Columbian, Colombia/Ecuador border area, Narino, Capuli Complex, ca. 850 to 1500 CE. One of the finest examples of a Coca chewer we have had the pleasure of handling! Earthenware seated coquero, hands to his knees, large wad of coca in his right cheek, sash over his left shoulder and loin cloth around his waist. His face shows extensive tattooing with added red and black pigment there along with his hair, sash and loin cloth. Interestingly, these areas were burnished allowing them to stand out from the rest of the figure. Size: 5" W x 8.25" H (12.7 cm x 21 cm)

An interesting footnote: while coca chewers are depicted as both male and female, males are always shown seated on a stool and females always shown seated on the ground - certainly a social statement about the roles of males and females in the Narino society.

Provenance: ex-old private Florida, USA collection, acquired in the 1980s

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#139859

Professional repair to left arm and left thigh, else intact with superb burial patina and some of the clearest manganese blooms one could ever see.