Photographer: Andrea Blumtritt | Rights management: Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Attribution - NonCommercial - ShareAlike 4.0 International
Avimorph pendants are among the most frequently found metal objects in the Diquís archaeological region. The inventoried figure appears to combine the attributes of various creatures (eagle, vulture, toucan). It resembles a bird of prey about to land. Its large, protruding eyes and wide-open wings express a tense posture. Although the wing and tail sections of the object are very flat, they have no additional ornamentation. Despite its similarity to the objects of the Veraguas-Chiriquí group, the figure has several special technical and design features. These include the production in hearth casting, the small size of the figure, the forward-bent head posture, the closed beak and the lack of head and ear jewellery. The elements listed above seem to indicate the limited material resources and technical skills of the makers. (Künne 2005)
