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Clay vessel

Figural vessel in the shape of a round-bottomed jug with a strongly curved body. The object has a short, straight neck with a projecting rim and sculptural applications. It has been smoothed and slurried on both sides. Its exterior is primed, painted and lightly polished. The primer and paint are partially eroded. There are small fractures on the rim. The ceramic is primed in brick red. Its exterior has a white-yellowish top coat, which was painted red-orange and black-brown. There are appliqués in the shape of a face on the neck. Four painted legs with attached paws appear on the body. The sculpted creature appears to be lying on its back and pulling up its legs. On the back of the object are two wavy bands at the shoulders, which are intertwined. According to Lothrop (1926), they represent a highly stylised, zoomorphic creature, which the author classifies as a plumed serpent, type E. Cultural significance: the type is known both from burials and from settlement contexts. Its objects are characterised above all by their salmon-coloured ground. The group has been documented mainly in the valley of the Río Tempisque and occurs only rarely north of Bagaces (Costa Rica). Although the inventoried object has no salmon-coloured grounding, it can only be assigned to the Jicote Policromo group according to Bonilla et al. 1987. In the Gran Nicoya region, there was a long indigenous tradition of facial representations. Attached cat-like faces can already be found on the red, brushed wares of the Policromo Medio (1350-800d.C.). (Künne 2004)

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Cataloguing data

Object type
crock
Dimensions
Height: 14,6 cm
Depth: 16 cm
Width: 13,8 cm
Diameter: 5,5 cm
Wandstärke: 0,75 cm
Material/Technique
Sound
Current location
Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Inventory number
IV Ca 41244

Provenance and sources

  • Production
    when
    Policromo Tardío (1350 - 1550)
    where
    Costa Rica
    Guanacaste
    Santa Cruz
    Santa Bárbara
  • Assignment to a curated holding:
    American Archaeology

Information about the record

Legal status metadata
CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED
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