The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 18, 2024
Animal-Headed Figure Pendant
c. 1000–1550
Overall: 8.7 x 9 x 3.1 cm (3 7/16 x 3 9/16 x 1 1/4 in.)
James Albert Ford Memorial Fund 1948.18
Location: 233 Mesoamerican and Intermediate Region
Description
Among the pendants shown here are a crustacean (1943.290), an animal-headed figure (1948.18), and two pendants featuring birds (1951.442 and 1946.223). The latter were dubbed aguilas (eagles) by Christopher Columbus, who saw natives wearing them as necklace ornaments. Modern researchers are not as sure of the species shown, but some believe that they are birds of prey because talons and beaks are prominent and often clutch something, in one example here a small, disembodied head that holds a clapper. In both examples, two tufts in the form of crocodiles in profile flank the birds’ heads.- Treasures of Peruvian Gold. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (February 23-April 3, 1966).Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art; February 23-April 3, 1966. "Treasures of Peruvian Gold."
- {{cite web|title=Animal-Headed Figure Pendant|url=false|author=|year=c. 1000–1550|access-date=18 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1948.18