The museum was created in 1999 and displays cultural assets recovered during
the 1970s in the Pukara archaeological zone.
The collection is especially composed of granite steles and monoliths of
zoomorphic and anthropomorphic figures of various formats corresponding to the
Pukara culture.
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Great Slayer
Designation: Sculpture – Great Slayer - Hatun Ñak’aq (Degollador).
Culture/style: Pukara (Classic Pukara). Material: Lithic (sandstone).
Chronology: 200 BCE – 400 CE – (Late Formative). Technique: Carved.
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Atypical statue that represents a character with feline attributes
sitting on a plinth or pedestal that imposes hierarchy on him.
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There are trophy heads engraved by incision on the back and neck that
are attached to an element similar to a headdress and on this a
quadrangular cap with zig-zag motifs and a feline head sculpted upside
down in half relief, they are identical to the iconography of
classical Pukara ceramics.
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The sculpture presents a cover over the shoulder and the volume of the
head is much more important in relation to the character's body; the
eyes and mouth are figured in the form of feline jaws.
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As for the nose and ears, they were made in half relief and details
were added through incisions for greater ornamentation.
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It is observed that the “cutthroat” character holds a ceremonial knife
in his right hand and in his left hand he holds a human trophy head
without ornamentation on his chest, only the hair can be seen and he
is without ears.
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The trophy head is small, concepts that would denote the notion of
inferiority compared to the main character (it could be captured
prisoners). The representation of the character in its entirety and
the details have similar features with the trophy heads of Pukara
ceramics. Their shared iconographic styles indicate control over
esoteric knowledge as an important source of political power where the
presence of an ideology of hierarchies among the many competing elite
factions, necessary for successful competition against other elites
and the loyalty of the common population. It is no coincidence that
representations of trophy heads appear for the first time in High
Formative at a time that coincides with the development of elites with
marked evidence of hierarchization and competition.
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Trophy head
Designation: Sculpture – Trophy head. Culture/style: Pukara (Classic
Pukara). Material: Lithic (sandstone). Chronology: 500 BCE – 400 CE –
(Late Formative). Technique: Carved.
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Anthropomorphic sculpture made in bulk, where the material preference
was red sandstone rock, corresponds to a trophy head.
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In this, iconographic elements are represented in high and medium
relief, where it is observed that the eyes and mouth are figured in
oval shapes. It presents the nose but not the ears and does not
present any ornament, it defines hair without ears. Its shape denotes
the notion of inferiority of the trophy head compared to the main
character.
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This type of sculptures will be characterized by anthropomorphic
artifacts or decapitated heads executed with canons shared by the
sculptural art of the Titicaca basin and are related to symbolic and
ideological power during the Late Upper Formative, where there is a
kind of strengthening of the authority of the elite.
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This sculptural motif was found in the 1970s during the excavations of
the COPESCO Plan, in the sealed context of one of the six niches of an
enclosure located in the East atrium of the Qalasaya pyramid (said
information is obtained from Mujica's publications, 1991 and Klarich,
2005).
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Lithic sculpture
Pukara (200 BCE - 400 CE).
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Lithic sculpture
Pukara (200 BCE - 400 CE).
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Devourers
The term devourer refers to an anthropomorphized felinebeing that
appears to be eating a sacrifice. Typically they are depicted with
special apparel, finely made caps, decorated hair and tattooed bodies.
They hold human heads and knifes between their hands. The most important
are those that appear to be eating a child, depicted as inside the
feline throat. The eyes of the devourers are squarish depicted with
double orbits from which fall lines of tears.
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Some of the sculptures do not have religious themes but depict eminent
people who control society such as priest. These devourer sculptures
are unique in this area. This theme is one that developed here and it
has no antecedents in the culture of the altiplano.
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The objects most representative of these devourers can be found in
this museum. One can observe the central ritual of this theme, that of
the eating of a child.
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Devourer I
Pukara (200 BCE - 400 CE).
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Devourer II
Pukara (200 BCE - 400 CE).
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Lithic sculpture of a priest
Designation: Sculpture. Culture/style: Pukara (Classic Pukara).
Material: Lithic (sandstone). Chronology: 500 BCE – 400 CE – (Late
Formative). Technique: Carved.
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Anthropomorphic statue or monolith worked in a round lump of red
sandstone rock. The eyes, eyebrows and arms on the thorax can be seen
in high and low relief. Incisions have been used for the details of
the fingers and ornamentation on the headdress or hat. Have a small
plinth with a functional aspect because it allows the stability of the
statue.
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The volume of the head, like other lithosculptures in this category,
is larger in comparison to the body, which indicates prestige.
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In some figurines discovered during COPESCO excavations in the 1970s,
evidence of polychrome paintings (red, black, white and yellow)
present on ceramics from the Pukara period has been observed on the
surface. (Mujica 1990; Flores and Tantaleán 2012).
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Sculpture traditions in both the north and south of the Titicaca basin
produced statues with human faces and a set of common icons, such as
large eyes, hair ribbons, belts, and trophy heads.
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"Feline room" and "The cult of the feline"
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Feline room - In 1975, the first course on “Methods and
techniques in Andean archeology” was held in the Pukara archaeological
complex, where various Peruvian and foreign archaeologists
participated. During the excavations, various objects were found,
including the ceramics on display, recovered from one of the mounds
(pyramids) of the archaeological site.
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The cult of the feline - Feline designs appear from very early
times in the various Andean cultures (1800 BCE), generally linked to
religious and cult aspects. Feline motifs are often anthropomorphized,
that is, human figures with feline attributes. This man-nature
relationship is important because it shows probable modes of social
behavior in the Pukara era. The representation of felines appears on
fine ceramics probably from the priestly class that exercised control.
The way a feline behaves can often be used as an example for humans,
although its fierceness and agility may also have been reasons for
fear, which is why it is represented as a deity.
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Sahumer vase
Designation: Ceremonial vessel - Sahumer / Censer. Culture/style:
Pukara. Material: Ceramics. Chronology: 200 BCE – 400 CE – Formative
(Classic Pukara). Technique: Modeling-Moulding with incision decoration
and post-coccio paint application.
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Ceremonial vessel or censer in the shape of a flared annular cup with
incision iconography and finely decorated post-firing polychrome.
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The motifs include bands, stepped elements, triangles, zigzags,
rampants and the relief representation of a feline with symbols and a
collar with a ring. The body is in profile with the face turned facing
forward.
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Chakana cross
The word "chakana" means "bridge" or "staircase". Its importance is
mentioned by the first Spanish chroniclers who observe this symbol in
different Andean temples.
- The chakana is the Andean representation of the southern cross.
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Observation of the stars was a constant in pre-Hispanic societies,
since with this they knew the lunar cycles (season of rain and
drought), knowledge of the first order for their economy based on
agriculture.
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Suche stele
Designation: Sculpture - Stele. Culture/style: Pukara (Classic Pukara).
Material: Lithic (sandstone). Chronology: 500 BCE – 400 CE – (Late
Formative). Technique: Carved in high relief.
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Stele or sandeel made from an elongated block of sandstone rock,
commonly known as “El Suche” (mythical fish). One of the typical
elements of this sculpture is the presence of a notch or stepped
shoulder on the top of the artifact.
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The body represents the high-relief iconographic motifs of
serpent-like beings delimited with parallel lines on the back and the
presence of a circle and batrachium in the upper part of the main
scene. The zoomorphic creature is generally composed of a wavy body
with a head with features of feline with oval mouth and eyes with
semicircular ears.
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The zoomorphic/ring/bathracian iconographic elements seem to have been
a favorite motif in the decoration of these stelae. As for their
well-normalized iconographic creations, they must have served as
support for the important immaterial conceptions of the groups
participating in that first highland ideology.
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Pukara stele
Designation: Fragment. Culture/style: Not determined. Material: Lithic
(sandstone). Chronology: 2000 BCE – 200 BCE – (Formative Period).
Manufacturing technique: Carved. Decoration technique: Incised and flat
embossed.
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Upper fragment of a gray stone stele, rectangular in shape with a
slope at the top.
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On the front side you can see part of an anthropomorphic head with a
headdress with zoomorphic heads and feathers. In the upper part of the
headdress it has a circle.
- The posterior face has a zoomorphic head with a forked tongue.
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Stele of felines
Designation: Sculpture - Tombstone or stele. Culture/style: Pukara
(Medium or Classic Pukara). Material: Lithic (white sandstone).
Chronology: 500 BCE – 400 CE – (Late Formative). Technique: Carved.
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Lithosculpture in the form of a tombstone or elongated slab worked on
a block of sandstone rock. It has a significant thick portion of the
base or plinth to be fixed vertically on the ground.
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Staggered geometric motifs and crosses are observed, where zoomorphic
designs with feline features such as the jaguar are represented in the
central part (the jaguar lives in the Carabaya jungle), are engraved
in bas-relief.
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The felines are shown stylized and in profile, but with their faces
facing forward.
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The steles with these stone records are much earlier than the
anthropomorphic statues in the Pukara tradition.
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An important aspect is the choice of the lithic element (sandstone),
however, there are no studies that allow us to know how these were
worked, the technique used and the objects used. For example, there is
no known extraction site or production area. It cannot be said if the
rock was brought raw to the site and worked afterwards, or if the
sculpture arrived in its final state.
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See also
Source
Location
