Among the wealth of jewellery worn by the Moche elite was a rich variety of necklaces, which also served as grave goods in the culture’s tombs. In the recently opened Moche tomb of the Lord of Sipán, one grave offered up 14 necklaces of various types.¹ They were composed of gold beads of different sizes, precious stones and shells. Not all were local materials: spondylus shell and amethysts were traded from Ecuador; emeralds from Columbia; amber from the Dominican Republic or Costa Rica; and sodalite from Bolivia.² Since the elite controlled the trade routes and the mines, they had exclusive access to the finest materials, from which they created jewellery and some ritual objects.Because of the rarity of most of the precious stones used in ritual, they probably served as decoration and symbols of high status rather than being imbued with special significance.³

The two gold necklaces take different forms. The double strand one (cat. 79) is made from hollow tubular beads representing bones, pinched in at the centres, and tapering in size towards the back of the neck. The other (cat. 78) is a complex web of 651 beads: three strands of spheres, each row with a different circumference, are linked vertically with elongated ovals. The gold beads were all made in two halves and soldered together.

Three types of gemstones of various sizes—opal, quartz and emerald—are interspersed with gold to form the green single-strand necklace (cat. 80). The amethyst necklace is similarly constructed, with gold beads separating each oval precious stone, cut and arranged in grade sizes (cat. 81). The quartz necklace is exceptional for the huge teardrop-shaped bauble hanging at its centre (cat. 82).

These elements were shaped using stone hammers and chisels, as the Moche did not use metal tools. Quartz, in particular, is an exceptionally difficult material to work with, requiring great skill and patience.⁴

Simeran Maxwell

1. Walter Alva and Christopher B. Donnan, Royal Tombs of Sipán, Los Angeles: Fowler Museum of Cultural History, UCLA 1993, pp. 195, 199.

2 Gabriela Schwörbel Hoessel, ‘The forgers of metal’, in Victoria Mujica (ed.),
Oro del Peru Museum, Lima: Fundación Miguel Mujica Gallo 2009, p. 129.

3. The spondylus shell is an exception, see cats 23, 77.

4. Heidi King, cat. 146, in Kathleen Berrin (ed.), The spirit of ancient Peru: Treasures from the Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera, London: Thames and Hudson 1997, p. 198.

Among the wealth of jewellery worn by the Moche elite was a rich variety of necklaces, which also served as grave goods in the culture’s tombs. In the recently opened Moche tomb of the Lord of Sipán, one grave offered up 14 necklaces of various types.¹ They were composed of gold beads of different sizes, precious stones and shells. Not all were local materials: spondylus shell and amethysts were traded from Ecuador; emeralds from Columbia; amber from the Dominican Republic or Costa Rica; and sodalite from Bolivia.² Since the elite controlled the trade routes and the mines, they had exclusive access to the finest materials, from which they created jewellery and some ritual objects.Because of the rarity of most of the precious stones used in ritual, they probably served as decoration and symbols of high status rather than being imbued with special significance.³

The two gold necklaces take different forms. The double strand one (cat. 79) is made from hollow tubular beads representing bones, pinched in at the centres, and tapering in size towards the back of the neck. The other (cat. 78) is a complex web of 651 beads: three strands of spheres, each row with a different circumference, are linked vertically with elongated ovals. The gold beads were all made in two halves and soldered together.

Three types of gemstones of various sizes—opal, quartz and emerald—are interspersed with gold to form the green single-strand necklace (cat. 80). The amethyst necklace is similarly constructed, with gold beads separating each oval precious stone, cut and arranged in grade sizes (cat. 81). The quartz necklace is exceptional for the huge teardrop-shaped bauble hanging at its centre (cat. 82).

These elements were shaped using stone hammers and chisels, as the Moche did not use metal tools. Quartz, in particular, is an exceptionally difficult material to work with, requiring great skill and patience.⁴

Simeran Maxwell

1. Walter Alva and Christopher B. Donnan, Royal Tombs of Sipán, Los Angeles: Fowler Museum of Cultural History, UCLA 1993, pp. 195, 199.

2 Gabriela Schwörbel Hoessel, ‘The forgers of metal’, in Victoria Mujica (ed.),
Oro del Peru Museum, Lima: Fundación Miguel Mujica Gallo 2009, p. 129.

3. The spondylus shell is an exception, see cats 23, 77.

4. Heidi King, cat. 146, in Kathleen Berrin (ed.), The spirit of ancient Peru: Treasures from the Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera, London: Thames and Hudson 1997, p. 198.