Stirrup-spouted vessel with sacrificial scene
Günther & Ursula Hartmann, Berlin, Germany
Description
fired clay/ ceramic, slip paint, inventory no. “1091607”, spout dam.
This vessel represents a mountain massif with five peaks. Between them, nine human sacrifices are arranged in relief, with a seated deity on the lower right, who attends the sacrificial rituals.
Mountains are considered sacred by many peoples of the earth. For their peaks represented the contact between heaven and earth - between the divine and the earthly, and they housed caves that were considered to be entrances to the underworld. For the Moche, too, the omnipresent mighty Andes were considered sacred and the Inca considered their peaks as deities “Apu”.
Expertise
Thermoluminescence Expertise, 14.06.1991, Ralf Kotalla, Haigerloch, GermanyComparing literature
Berrin, Kathleen (ed.), The spirit of ancient Peru, San Francisco 1998, p. 118Notices
This object is subject to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Protection Act. Export documents are required for export (subjected to a fee).