Single Spout Bottle in the form of a Animal with Lined Skin Possibly 1000 - 1476

This single spout bottle in the form of an animal was created by the Lambayeque people. What we now call Peru was, for thousands of years, the site of dynamic cultural exchange and innovation. The Lambayeque culture flourished here between 750 and 1375 AD. This earthenware vessel embodies the Lambayeque’s deeply felt connection to the natural world. The animal form is rendered with careful attention to detail. Notice the lines that denote its fur or skin. Its determined expression suggests a creature of great strength. The animal represented is ambiguous. It seems to have the body of a dog-like creature, but the face could also be that of a bat. This ambiguous representation might suggest how porous the boundaries between species were understood to be in the Lambayeque world. Consider how this vessel might have been used in ritual contexts. What feelings might it have evoked when filled with liquid and offered to deities or ancestors? In its form and function, this work reminds us of the rich spiritual lives of the pre-Columbian peoples of South America.