The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 10, 2023

Animal-Headed Figure Pendant

1–800 CE

Colombia, Quimbaya or Yotoco style

Cast gold

Overall: 5.5 x 3.9 x 1.9 cm (2 3/16 x 1 9/16 x 3/4 in.)

In memory of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Humphreys, gift of their daughter Helen 1947.15

Location

233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region

Description

The same creature, with a human body but the head of an animal, appears in both pendants. It holds batons to its mouth, and whiskers or ears flare from the sides of the head. The headdress domes are mystifying; they have been described as mushrooms or gourds, among other things.

Provenance
John Wise, Ltd.
(John Wise, Ltd.)
Exhibition history

Dallas, TX:Neiman-Marcus Co.; October 19-31, 1959. "South American Fortnight." cat. no. 24.

Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art; February 23-April 3, 1966. "Treasures of Peruvian Gold."

Shamanism. Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Santiago, Chile (organizer) (December 1, 2022-June 30, 2023) https://museo.precolombino.cl/2022/12/12/chamanismo-visiones-fuera-del-t....

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1947.15