Sculpture in the shape of two figures (suplicante)

Alamito artist(s)

500 BCE–500 CE · Stone · Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

This sculpture, of a type often referred to as a supplicant (suplicante) for the position of the figure with raised hands, represents two figures, back to back, one smaller than the other, the larger one marked as male. The back-to-back curvilinear bodies of the figures were punctuated by drilled openings to demarcate the limbs. The faces are tilted slightly upward, with a rounded, crescent-shaped face and prominent nose. The eyes were sculpted as bulging circular shapes. The Condorhuasi-Alamito peoples were llama pastoralists in the area that is now the Catamarca province of Argentina. They were skilled artisans in a variety of media, including ceramic, metal, and stone. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Condorhuasi-Alamito peoples maintained extensive long-distance contacts with other regions, including the important site of Tiwanaku, near Lake Titicaca in what is now Bolivia.

Artist

Alamito artist(s)

Date

500 BCE–500 CE

Medium

Stone

Culture

Alamito

Department

Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

Credit line

Gift of Claudia Quentin, 2016