Keywords: Chorrera - Avian Effigy Vessel - Walters 482772 - Three Quarter.jpg Chorrera culture 1800-300 BCE ceramics are considered the hallmark of the civilization that arose in the wake of Valdivia culture along the coastal provinces of Esmeraldas Manab� Guayas and Los R�os Notable technological advances in ceramics were made and a profound stylistic unity in all art forms was achieved Artists aimed at creation of objects beyond ordinary need Chorrera art signals a movement from objects used in ritual to objects that became the focus of ritual Sculptural ceramics are larger and more elaborate in form The conceptual focus of Chorrera ceramics is primarily on the natural state of things Potters excelled in figural sculpture animal and plant effigy vessels and whistling vessels This vessel is a spherical red bottle marked by a single spout or neck The vessel body forms the belly of a composite avian-human lying on its back The 'bird man's' features- a human head opposing wings and tail feathers- are modeled to the sides of the vessel wall creating a balanced symmetrical form The white painted belly and face of the creature provide visual contrast and draw attention to its upraised head Additional contrast is lent by the gloss of the red paint against the matte finish of the white Large so-called coffee bean eyes and diminutive nose mouth and ears conventional to Chorrera figural sculpture characterize the creature's face ca 800 400 BCE Formative earthenware with red paint cm 20 20 8 accession number 48 2772 7981 Helen Judge Queens New York date and mode of acquisition unknown John Stokes New York 1981 mode of acquisition unknown Elena Austen Stokes New York date and mode of acquisition unknown Walters Art Museum Gift of Elena Austen Stokes 2003 Art of the Ancient Americas The Walters Art Museum Baltimore 2002-2010 place of origin Ecuador Walters Art Museum license Chorrera art Pre-Columbian pottery Human headed birds Pre-Columbian art in the Walters Art Museum Media contributed by the Walters Art Museum needs category review |