Portrait Vessel with a Stirrup Spout Yale University Art Gallery

A.D. 400–700

On view, 1st floor, Art of the Ancient Americas

Moche artists were able to capture a personality in three dimensions, working with clay and limited color ranges of clay slip. This vessel was probably a portrait of a local ruler or the head of a clan. At least one other portrait vessel showing the same individual survives. In addition to his distinctive features, his serpent-design headband may have been a clue to his identity. The stirrup spout, widely used on the arid north coast of Peru, kept liquids from spilling and prevented evaporation.

Medium: Ceramic with pigment
Dimensions: 11 5/16 in. (28.7 cm)
base: 5 3/4 in. (14.6 cm)
11 5/16 × 5 3/4 in. (28.7 × 14.6 cm)
Credit Line: University Purchase
Accession Number: 1956.27.7
Geography: Central Andes, Peru
Culture: Central Andes, North Coast, Moche
Period: Early Intermediate Period
Classification: Containers
Disclaimer: Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Bibliography

Dr. Christopher B. Donnan, Moche Portraits from Ancient Peru (Austin, Tex.: University of Texas Press, 2004), pp. 15, 21, fig. 2.5

Elise K. Kenney, ed., Handbook of the Collections: Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1992), 322, ill.

Object copyright

No Copyright - United States

Additional information

Object/Work type

human figures (visual works), utilitarian objects, vessels

Technical metadata and APIs

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