Creative Commons License
Bird Plaque
(Ancient Americas )
This plaque depicts a bird as it opens its beak to consume the fish it clutches in its talons. One leg seems to be supporting the bird on a post or tree stump while the other leg brings the fish to its mouth. The suggestion of feathers, legs, and eyes have been made through carefully incised details in the shell. The bird’s eye is further accented by a mother-of-pearl inlay, while the rest of the plaque was carved from a single spondylus shell.
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.
The Merrin Gallery, New York [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; private collection, 1991, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 2009, by gift.
Geographies
Peru (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 2 1/2 x W: 1 5/8 x D: 3/8 in. (6.4 x 4.1 x 1 cm)
Credit Line
Anonymous gift, 2009
Location in Museum
Charles Street: Second Floor: Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano
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.
71.1220