M.2010.115.270
Nasca beakers are often decorated in horizontal bands of icons or patterns. The motifs and colors chosen for each section no doubt reflect both aesthetic choices and cosmological ideas, and polychrome decorated vessels like this served elite or ritual purposes, as grave offerings and feasting vessels.
On the lower band of this beaker are white snakes alternating with oval shapes, possibly seeds, on a red background, all of which may indicate an underground or underworld space. The central band features repetitions of the so-called step-fret motif, composed of three or more steps connected to a hook or spiral. It is one of the most common motifs of the ancient Americas, found on ceramics, textiles, and architecture from Bolivia to the Southwestern United States. It has been interpreted as a stylized representation of mountains, temples, or thrones, as well as clouds or the cross-sections of conch shells, with myriad associated symbolic meanings to do with the sea, land, and sky. The repeating motifs in the upper band appear to be stylized trophy heads trailing droplets of blood. The association between trophy heads, the spilling of blood, and fertility and renewal is well attested in Nasca culture, reinforced here by the fact that the bleeding heads are shaped like chili peppers.
2025