VIRÚ-GALLINAZO culture North coast 1250 BC – 1 AD
Bird-effigy bottle 1250 BC - 1 AD ceramic15.0 (h) x 16.9 (w) x 14.2 (d) cm Museo Larco, Lima Photograph: Daniel Giannoni
Virú-Gallinazo artists combined elements from the three realms—sky, land and underworld—into one creature. A bird’s body rests on the striped legs of a Pampas cat and a stylised octopus appears on the bird’s throat. Patterns were drawn onto the clay using organic pigments or wax, then fired twice in an open oven. The colour red was achieved by adding crushed shell and black, made by smoking the vessel in the second firing.
Virú-Gallinazo artists combined elements from the three realms—sky, land and underworld—into one creature. A bird’s body rests on the striped legs of a Pampas cat and a stylised octopus appears on the bird’s throat. Patterns were drawn onto the clay using organic pigments or wax, then fired twice in an open oven. The colour red was achieved by adding crushed shell and black, made by smoking the vessel in the second firing.
Virú-Gallinazo artists combined elements from the three realms—sky, land and underworld—into one creature. A bird’s body rests on the striped legs of a Pampas cat and a stylised octopus appears on the bird’s throat. Patterns were drawn onto the clay using organic pigments or wax, then fired twice in an open oven. The colour red was achieved by adding crushed shell and black, made by smoking the vessel in the second firing.
