Pair of Earflare Frontals

Unknown

12th–15th century · Gold · Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

It was customary in Precolumbian America to bury the personal finery of an individual with him upon his death. In the earliest times such finery consisted of bone, shell, or stone ornaments. By Chimu times the personal jewelry of the nobility had become extremely lavish, and large amounts of flamboyant ornaments in gold were produced by full-time metalsmiths. The royal burials at Chan Chan, the Chimu capital, were so rich that after the conquest the Spaniards set up a commercial mining company to extract their treasures.

Artist

Unknown

Date

12th–15th century

Medium

Gold

Culture

Chimú

Department

Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

Credit line

The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979