Pre-Columbian Art Museum, Cuzco, Peru

The Pre-Columbian Art Museum is an art museum in Cusco, Peru, dedicated to the display of archaeological artifacts and examples of pre-Columbian artworks drawn from all regions of pre-Columbian Peru.

The building where the museum is now housed was originally an Inca ceremonial courthouse.

The works of art displayed at the museum, encompass a period of time ranging between 1250 BCE and 1532 CE. There are a total of ten galleries: Formative, Nasca, Mochica, Huari, Chancay–Chimu, Inca, Wood, Jewelry and Stone, Silver, and Gold and Metals.

Entrance to the museum The museum is situated on Plazoleta de las Nazarenas in Cusco's San Blas district, and has on permanent display exhibitions of some 450 individual representative artifacts that are drawn from the wider collection of its parent museum, the Larco Museum in the Peruvian capital Lima.

Cupisnique ceramic bottle North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. The head - Subtle engraved lines draw a head on the recipient of this fine ceramic bottle. The bottle’s neck is at the same time a human neck topped by a head that, turned and with the open mouth, is the tip of the container. In all pre-Hispanic societies, the human head was associated to vital powers, in the understanding that it lodges the senses through which the extemal reality and life in this world are experienced.

Cupisnique ceramic bowls North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. Connections: owls and steps - Andean societies imagined and shared a worldview that identified three planes or worlds in constant interaction: the world above, the inner or subterranean world, and the terrestrial world. These bowls express such interaction through the stepped symbols, while owls represent the connection between the world above, as birds, and the inner world because they hunt by night, and are regarded as capable of connecting both worlds and flowing between them.

Cupisnique stone figurine North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. Figurine - In all societies it was common, from very early times, to represent humans in figurines or statuettes. Most likely, they were representations of individuals who played prominent roles in their communities, as priests or dignitaries. Some are shown in contemplative attitudes or performing some ritual act. It is also possible that these objects fulfilled votive roles in temples, rituals or ceremonies.

Pallasca stone sculpture North Andes, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Sitting feline - From very early times, the societies of ancient Peru created sculptures and monoliths that adorned their temples and protected their entrances as eternal guardians. One of the most frequent such character was the feline, a symbol of strength and power, which commanded respect and fear. This mediumsized sculpture, representing a rampant feline, probably had a votive function in some temple vain or niche of a temple.

Virú ceramic sculpture jug North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. Body - The plasticity of clay allowed to make extremely realistc objects and containers in the most diverse forms. In this Virú sculptural pitcher that representes a semi-naked male character, facial features and other bodily elements, such as the fingers or the navel, appear in extreme detal, following this society’s stylistic canons.

Vicus ceramic masks North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. Masks - Masks were used in rituals and ceremonies in ancient Peruvian societies to represent the possibility of inhabiting liminal states by those who wore them. Wearing a mask with an ancestral face, the user could transit and flow between worlds. The mask also announced the possibility of a transformation: rulers or priests who became mythological or ancestral beings. Masks were also customary as funeral offerings that covered the face of the deceased and gave them a new identity in the world beyond.

Chavin stone slab North Andes, Peru. 1250 BCE - 7 CE. The snake - In the Andean worldview, animals are powerful beings who represent the worlds and are associated with different elements and abilities. This fragment of a carved stone slab shows a fanged snake and the attributes of a predator. The snake is associated with the underworld, but having the ability to communicate with the terrestrial world. In formative period iconography, this being is present in various ceramic designs and carved stone slabs that decorated the ceremonial areas in temples.

Viru ceramic bottles North coast, Peru. 1250 BCE - 1 CE. Jug people - Despite the recurring use of certain motifs and symbols, room was left to experiment with new patterns and designs that differed stylistically from one society to another. A pattern of fine, repetitive, undulating lines in their pitchers with faces drawn around the necks was common in Viru, some of whose designs would influence later cultural traditions. These jars show characters, probably warriors or priests, wearing earrings, face paint and patterned tunics.

Chimu wood figurines North coast, Peru. 1300 CE — 1532 CE. Stylized bodies - A common practice in ancient Peruvian societies was to model or carve human figurines that were probably then dressed or decorated to be offered as votive offerings. They are stylized representations of the human body and their attributes are suggested by simple lines, without much detailed shapes.

Nasca ceramic vase South coast, Peru. 1 CE - 800 CE. Marine birds - Nasca society was characterized by its elaborate colorful designs through which its artists captured the world around them. The naturalistic representations of animals — many of them represented in the famous geoglyphs of Nasca and Palpa — were frequent and spoke of everyday community life. This vessel, which shows delicate and stylized marine birds with long necks, reveals the importance of the coastal environment for the subsistence of the Nasca in their desert living environment.

Nasca figurines South coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Women figurines - Agricultural societies all over the world have been characterized by the frequent schematic or idealized representation of the female figure associated with fertility, and the creation and regeneration of life. Pre-Hispanic societies were not an exception. These Nasca figurines are characterized by their schematic and simple features, and in two of them their nakedness stands out, revealing the propitiatory character of these objects in their social context.

Nasca ceramic bowls South coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Head offerings - In the Andean worldview, the head was a powerful metaphor for the power to regenerate life. When buried in the earth — the underworld of the dead — heads assured the regeneration of life in the world above. Nasca ceramic artifacts often include heads presented as offerings, typically images of the community’s ancestors. These bowls showing faces with eyes wide open and thorn-pierced lips were deposited in Nasca tombs as if seeds on the ground.

Nasca ceramic bottle, vase and jug South coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Decapitating gods - These complex, recurring Nasca art scenes show mythological beings holding trophy heads. The human head in the Andean world has been closely linked to vital power, fertility and rebirth. In mythology, supernatural characters act as decapitators who take the heads of their victims whom they regard as their recovered property, perhaps symbolizing an action needed to restore or start a new cycle of regeneration.

Mochica ceramic sculptorical jugs North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Mythical squash - Hybrid representations of fruits and animals that blurred the boundaries between them were not uncommon in the Andean worldview. Fruits and animals are made a single body, rendered alive by the water they may hold, as in these ceramic pitchers. These containers represent loche squash fruits typical of the North Coast, crowned by owl heads. Their bodies show high relief drawings of humans and animals, as sea lions and birds.

Mochica ceramic pitcher North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Moon animal - In the art of the pre-Columbian civilizations of the north coast a dragon-like being recurs in representations of their myths in connection with the night and the phases of the Moon. In this pitcher, the so-called “lunar animal”, a hybrid zoomorphic character that combines the features of felines, foxes, birds and snakes, is depicted over a crescent Moon.

Moche ceramic sculptural pitcher North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Anthropomorphic warriors - Two warriors with a human body and a fox's head, armed with weapons and wearing battle dress, face each other. On the rim of the pitcher there is a rope design encircling the neck, indicating the fate of the loser in this confrontation. Ritual combat preceded the most important ceremony of the Moche world: the sacrifice ceremony. In Andean culture, foxes are creatures that symbolize the connection between worlds, and these warriors may have been intended to symbolically represent these essential interactions.

Moche ceramic sculptural bottle North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Mythological sweet potato - Tubers like the sweet potato were associated with the underworld. This clay bottle represents a mythological sweet potato, from the protuberances of which there emerge intertwined human and animal figures. A condor attacks a man dressed in a loincloth and headdress, in what appears to be a sacrificial act. To one side, a seabird can be seen, and in the lower section there is a one-eyed monkey with a mournful expression. Schematic human heads form part of this composition. These depictions evoke the underworld and are an expression of the forces that dwell there, and which in interaction with other worlds enable the regeneration of life.

Moche ceramic sculptural bottle North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Anthropomorphic deer - In the Andes, the deer is prey to large predators. But, in this clay bottle, it is shown as a high-ranking mythological figure. A hybrid with a human body and the head of a large-antlered deer, it is wearing a shirt, breastplate, belt and wristbands, and it is extending its right hand, as priests would have done during rituals.

Moche ceramic sculptural pitchers North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Foxes - Two large clay pitchers represent hybrid figures with a human body and a fox's head. In Andean mythology, the fox is seen as a connecting animal between worlds, a figure linking the sky with the earth, and also associated with the moon. Here, in Moche art, it is depicted as a wise and important being. In these pitchers, the figures are shown seated in the position usually adopted by priests, and their attire indicates their status.

Moche ceramic sculptural pitcher North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Blind man - Some scenes in Moche art depict figures who are mutilated or have some kind of physical disability, guarding the entrance to tombs or as protectors of sacred spaces. Often, blind figures are shown wearing headdresses or adornments to indicate their high status. In different societies, traditionally it is suggested that the visual impairment which means they cannot see in this world, gives such individuals the ability to connect with the invisible world and manifest themselves through that world, a concept illustrated by the mushroom-shaped headdress worn by this figure. Several species of mushrooms possess hallucinogenic properties, and they were consumed by priests or shamans.

Mochica ceramic sculptural heads North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Powerful heads - Andean ceramists modeled artifacts portraying human heads and faces where they skilifully reproduced the individuals’ facial characteristics with extreme realism. These ceramics are rightfully known as ‘portrait huacos”. These powerful heads - seed heads, vital heads — probably portraits of members of the political and religious elites of the time, were likely buried in tombs as offerings to reinforce the links between the deceased and the people they represented.

Mochica ceramic sculptural bottle North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Duck - Ducks connect the worlds above and below through the lagoons where they live, thus relating the water that flows from the depths with the upper world. This naturalistic and highly realistic representation is also evidence of masterful Mochica ceramics.

Mochica ceramic sculptural vessels North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Life in the desert - The Peruvian coast is a desert irrigated by rivers that give origin to oases, distant from each other. Cactuses are important plants in the mostly arid Peruvian coast. Their ability to survive in adverse conditions, virtually without water for long periods of time, made them magical in the eyes of ancient Peruvians. Moreover, some cactuses have hallucinogenic properties, further underscoring their important role.

Huari ceramic sculptural vases Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Llama heads - Llamas were fundamental in Huari civilization. Huaris fostered llama herding everywhere they had influence. Although Huari influence is manifest in the theme chosen for these pieces, their style and outstanding artistic representation point to a strong northern identity.

Humaya ceramic figurines Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Figurines - Small clay figurines representing social archetypes as warriors or priests were probably used as offerings in rituals or burials. These characters with facial and body painting are shown with necklaces or pectorals.

Humaya ceramic figurines Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Figurines - The humans represented in these tablet-shaped figurines are highly abstract, their human traits stylized to the maximum. Shoulders, arms, legs are only sketched although decorative drawings complement the synthetic sculptural forms. These objects were used as votive offerings in temples, burials or rituals.

Humaya ceramic figurines Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Figurines - The representations of characters in figurines were not always realistic. One of the characters shown here features well defined human traits, while in the other the details like the head and the arms are only insinuated by subtle reliefs on the body.

Humaya sculptural ceramic vases Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Porters - These are complex objects that are simultaneously sculptures and vessels. The sculptures show men with wrinkled faces, ceremonially dressed and carrying loads on their heads, perhaps as a representation of community ancestors. These sculptorical vessels also show some characteristics that will be strengthened later in Chancay pottery.

Casma ceramic pitcher Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. The Great Lord - The cane-holding standing character, positioned at the center, as an axis mundi or organizer, is central to Andean iconography and seems to express the power of the divinity to unite, connect, and organize interactions between worlds. It appears in the northern art of Chavin, in the southern art of Tiahuanaco, and in other styles. In this Chimú pitcher, it appears against a dark backdrop.

Humaya ceramic figurine Central coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Bodies - This Humaya ceramic piece features a character with extended arms wearing ceremonial attire, a pectoral with beads, a decorated turban, and painted and tattooed body. The great diversity of details point to a high ranking individual, perhaps a dignitary or local ruler.

Atarco ceramic vases South coast, Peru. 800 CE — 1300 CE. Alliances - Using and giving certain objects was a way communities spread and strengthened their religious ideologies. In Huari society, the toast and, therefore, the vessels that contained them and their exchange, were used and delivered in regions where Huaris had effective control of the state or where they had established political alliances with the local ethnic groups. These fine glazed ceramic vases exhibit faces of Huari lords, one of them adorned with headdresses and earrings, while the other shows heads of divinities donning radiant headdresses.

Chimú sculptural ceramic bottle North coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Pelican - In the Andean world, pelicans were widely recognized as useful birds for their excrement, the guano of the islands, was an important fertilizer for agriculture. In addiion, they are symbolically associated with the sea and its fishing abilily. This Chimú sculptorical bottle, finely polished to a marror-like finish, represents a pelican with a great realism.

Chimú ceramic pitchers Central coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Condor and macaw - Birds travel between and connect worlds: condors are clear connectors between the world above, the guardians of the mountains and the ancestors; the macaw provides a connection between the world above and the wet, prolific jungle. In these fine jars, their heads were modeled in high sculptorical detail, while their bodies were represented in relief on the top of the vessel.

Chancay ceramic bowls Central coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Escorts - This kind of pitchers were included in Chancay funeral attires. High ranking, finely dressed individuals carry various objects or offerings. They probably led the dead in the transit to the other world and accompanied them in their transformation into ancestors who, from the world below, would propitiate the renewal of life.

Chancay ceramic vases Central coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Connections - These complex ceremonial vessels represent complementary objects and are identical mirror images of each other. The sculptorical parts of the vessels communicate to allow the passage and pouring of liquids, a use with probably important symbolic connotations.

Chimú ceramic bowls North coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Cormorants - In Andean cosmovision, cormorants were seabirds that connected the coastline and the coastal islands. Their comings and goings in the inner world of water was associated to the transit to the world of the ancestors. On the bodies of these pitchers is a circular area decorated with relief points, a Chimú technique known as “goose skin” with the cormorants shown inside a central frame.

Chimú sculptural ceramic bottle North coast, Peru. 1300 CE - 1532 CE. Spiraling snake - The traditional symbols of the Andean worldview are continuously reinterpreted and represented in newer forms. This bottle features a two-headed serpent coiled around itself as a spiral, alluding to the constant repetition of cycles and the possibility of a new beginning of life arising from the inner world.

Chimu-Inca ceramic macaw head 1300 CE — 1532 CE. Macaw head - The macaw, an Amazonian bird of beautiful and appreciated plumage, was admired and used in ceremonial vestments in various societies of ancient Peru. The Chimu-Inca style jug on display shows features of both pottery traditions: black color, characteristic of Chimu pottery, and the flat edge of the pitcher's peak, typical of Inca style containers.

Inca ceramic vessel 1300 CE — 1532 CE. Glass - A high glass that is a sculptorical representation of a human head through which liquids are poured in. Clearly a depiction of a high status individual and possibly, because of his earrings, an ancestor.

Inca ceramic pacchas 1300 CE — 1532 CE. Cudgels - Pacchas are ceremonial vessels that allow liquids to flow through them to be poured on the ground as an offering to the Earth in rituals of water worship or fertility, or even in gratitude. These pacchas in the shape of batons also symbolized, during the execution of these ceremonies, the military strength and political dominance of the Inca empire. Moreover, agricultural prosperity is linked allegorically to war, as a metaphor for the struggle for life.

Inca stone conopa animal figurines 1300 CE — 1532 CE. Alpacas - Tiny carved stone figurines, known as conopas, were — and still are — buried as propitiatory offerings and symbols of recognition and gratitude to Mother Earth. These Inca conopas represent alpacas, South American camelids whose wool is highly appreciated and has been used in the Andean highlands from very early times.

Inca and colonial wooden keros Post 1532 CE. Toasts - Although after the Spanish conquest some geometric motives were no longer useful to convey messages, the ceremonial toast remained an expression of the power of the Andean elites. The tradition of using keros did not end with the Spanish conquest. During colonial times they continued to be made although foreign motives and details were adopted and merged with the original ones. The Inca kero continues to show rhombic and staggered geometric motifs; the colonial kero represents a human head, also painted with designs of birds and plants.

Mochica shell bracelet North coast, Peru. 1 CE — 800 CE. Snails - The elites of ancient Peru wore ornaments of sea shells, whose organic forms were finely carved and polished, to symbolize the connection between their carriers with the marine world and its regenerating capacity. This bracelet was made from marine snails cut, carved, polished and strung together to create a jewel of great beauty to the eye.

See also

• Machu Picchu
• Indio Feliz Restaurant
• Inka Museum
• MAP Café Restaurant

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Source

• Museo de Arte Precolombino, Cusco - Wikipedia

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Location