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Collections

Female Figure Spouted Vessel100 BCE–600 CE

Not on view
Ceramic effigy vessel with bulbous terracotta body, molded human face and head, and painted figural and floral motifs in cream, red, and dark brown
Ceramic stirrup-spout vessel with a globular body in red-orange and cream, featuring a modeled human head with painted facial markings at the spout base, and a seated figure with hands visible below; body decorated with painted red and dark brown radiating floral or star motifs in Nasca style.

Unknown, Female Figure Spouted Vessel, 100 BCE–600 CE, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Gift of Nasli M. Heeramaneck, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Title
Female Figure Spouted Vessel
Culture
Nasca
Place Made
Peru, South Coast
Date Made
100 BCE–600 CE
Medium
Polychrome Ceramic
Dimensions
3 3/4 x 3 in. (9.53 x 7.62 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Nasli M. Heeramaneck
Accession Number
M.73.48.24
Classification
Ceramics
Collecting Area
Art of the Ancient Americas
Curatorial Notes

This Late Nasca bottle represents a female figure, probably a mythological ancestor or a priestess. The shape of her head, with two lobes on each side, may signal cranial deformation, a practice of body modification employed by many Andean societies to symbolize status and prestige, as osteological records indicate. The figure seems to be covered by a tunic (lliclla) adorned with designs of trophy heads and rayed faces. Some experts see the hands resting on the belly and the bulky shape of the vessel as signs of pregnancy.