Stirrup-spout bottle with confronting figures

Unknown

500–800 CE · Ceramic, slip · Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

Each side of this Moche stirrup spout bottle shows a prominent subject of Moche iconography, Wrinkle Face and Iguana facing each other. On the left side of each pair, Wrinkle Face, a fanged anthropomorphic figure with wrinkles, snake earspools, a feline headdress, and a snake-headed belt, sits on a throne. On the right side, Iguana, the anthropomorphized lizard, wears a bird headdress. While Wrinkle Face raises a hand with a pointed index finger, Iguana joins both hands in an attitude of veneration. Throughout Moche history, the two companions were portrayed in a wide range of complex scenes, such as burial ceremonies, "bean and stick" ceremonies interpreted as games or rituals surrounding agricultural activities, and combats with supernatural creatures.

Artist

Unknown

Date

500–800 CE

Medium

Ceramic, slip

Culture

Moche

Department

Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

Credit line

The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1961