Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Effigy Vessel of a Seated Figure with Long Tunic
(Ancient Americas )
In the Andes, the shape of the head itself could signal a person's social status or ethnic identity. This figure, probably a woman, has an artificially shaped head. Many Nasca people molded their heads to create a shape that is elongated and flattened across the forehead. Mothers tied boards behind babies’ heads, shaping their still-pliant skulls to create a lasting marker of status.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Sale, Sotheby's, New York, November 22 1993, lot 22; purchased by a private collection, November 22 1993; given to Walters Art Museum, 2009.
Exhibitions
| 2018 | Crowning Glory: Art of the Americas. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
Geographies
Peru (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 6 x W: 4 1/2 in. (15.24 x 11.43 cm)
Credit Line
Anonymous gift, 2009
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
48.2831