The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of February 7, 2023

Monkey Finial

c. 800–1470

Peru, North Coast, Sicán or Chimú, 9th-15th Century

Hammered and embossed gold alloy

Overall: 36.9 cm (14 1/2 in.)

James Albert Ford Memorial Fund 1949.197

Location

not on view

Description

This three-dimensional sculpture constructed of sheet gold may have served as the finial for a staff or baton. It represents a monkey holding a fruit.

Provenance
Brummer Collection
Brummer Collection
Exhibition history

New York, NY: Museum of Modern Art; January 26-March 26, 1954. "Ancient Arts of the Andes." exh. cat. repr. in black and white, p. 89, fig. 101.

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1949.197