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HOME :
Pre-Columbian Art :
Chimu Art : Chimu Carved Wood Lime Container
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Chimu Carved Wood Lime Container - PF.2334
Origin: Northern Coast of Peru
Circa: 1100
AD
to 1460
AD
Dimensions:
5" (12.7cm) high
Collection: Pre-Columbian
Style: Chimu
Medium: Wood
$6,500.00
Location: United States
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| Description |
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The Chimu culture arose around 800 A.D. and
flourished until the Incan conquest about six
hundred years later. Their civilization was
centered at their capital Chan Chan, about 300
miles north of Lima, literally meaning “Sun Sun,”
the largest Pre-Columbian city in Peru estimated
to contain almost one hundred thousand citizens.
The Chimu believed the sea, which they called
“Ni,” was the origin of life, a theory also
proposed by modern science and evolution.
Thanks to their sea-faring skills, the Chimu were
able to survive, nestled in between the desert
and the sea. The sea was everything to them: an
endless supply of food and the source of
inspiration for their most imaginative myths,
legends, and artwork. Agriculture was also vital,
and the Chimu drew up a vast number of
irrigation works demonstrating immense
engineering skill, some of which are still in use
today. Today, aside from the astounding mud
ruins of Chan Chan remarkably well preserved in
the heat of the desert, the Chimú are perhaps
best known for their distinctive black glazed
pottery influenced by their predecessors: the
Moche.
This stunning carved wood container exudes a
dynamic energy and spirit that belies its small
size. Used for storing powdered lime, the
Indians dabbed the lime, which adhered to the
wood want of the container onto coca leaves, the
lime bringing out the mild narcotic effect of the
coca. When chewed by the native highlanders,
the coca leaves slowed their metabolic rate,
helping to temper rigors of living at the over-12,
000 foot high altitudes of the Andes Mountains.
Functional works of art such as this five evidence
to the incredible creativity and craftsmanship
that formed an integral part of Pre-Columbian
Peru. Here the craftsman has artfully captured
the stylized image of a lizard as he scampers up
the side of the vessel, its tail wrapping around
the container. Three amusing, curly-tailed
monkeys sit in profile at the base of the
container, their wide-eyed faces peering toward
us with an amused expression. A stylized sea
bird with extended beak forms the deftly carved
wand portion of the lime container. Just as the
monkeys' expressive faces gaze out at the world,
so we gaze at this extraordinary work of art,
appreciating the sensitive and skilled artistry that
created it.
- (PF.2334)
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