MOCHE culture North coast 100 – 800 AD
Portrait head stirrup vessel 100-800 AD ceramic , mould made, painted slip, fired25.3 (h) x 16.4 (w) cm Ministerio de Cultura del Perú: Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Antropología e Historia del Perú, Photograph: Daniel Giannoni
Moche portrait pottery is a rare instance of an ancient civilisation producing lifelike depictions of real men. Some vessels display facial ornamentation and elaborate animal headdresses such as double-headed bird head-rings. The man with the puffy eyelids, swollen face and scar below his lip has been identified on numerous pots with slight variations. The portrait form evolved until the last phase of Moche, considered the pinnacle of the art.
Moche portrait pottery is a rare instance of an ancient civilisation producing lifelike depictions of real men. Some vessels display facial ornamentation and elaborate animal headdresses such as double-headed bird head-rings. The man with the puffy eyelids, swollen face and scar below his lip has been identified on numerous pots with slight variations. The portrait form evolved until the last phase of Moche, considered the pinnacle of the art.
Moche portrait pottery is a rare instance of an ancient civilisation producing lifelike depictions of real men. Some vessels display facial ornamentation and elaborate animal headdresses such as double-headed bird head-rings. The man with the puffy eyelids, swollen face and scar below his lip has been identified on numerous pots with slight variations. The portrait form evolved until the last phase of Moche, considered the pinnacle of the art.
