About this object

This figure, in a standing position with outstretched arms, is quite common in the ceramics and figurines in particular of the Chancay culture (1000-1450 CE). They are often feminine figures with short arms and accentuated eyes with lines on both sides. In this example, the Chancay figurine appears sexless, with arms reduced to stumps with stylized hands: palms are open and covered with black paint with barely detailed fingers. The head is pierced with three holes. The outline of the eyes and the mouth are highlighted with black paint. Under its hair or headwear (also painted in black), there is a black headband with geometric patterns. A uniform black band on the lower face, at chin height, completes the face.

In pre-Columbian civilizations, the use of ceramics was not limited to a domestic function, but also took on religious and ceremonial dimensions. In addition to vessels, Chancay potters produced ceramic sculptures of humans and animals. They were likely placed in tombs as companions or guardians of the dead.

The Chancay culture is known for producing very distinctive textiles, woodwork and ceramics. It is believed that the Chancay culture encompassed the coast and valleys of the central coast of the Andes (modern-day central Peru). It arose after the disappearance of the Wari (or Huari) Empire in 900 CE and came under the rule of the Inca Empire in the course of the 15th century, before being conquered by the Spanish in 1532.