Three Nazca Feathered Dowels Peru, Early Intermediate Period, c. 100 - 400 AD These rare feathered dowels ...

Description

Three Nazca Feathered Dowels
Peru, Early Intermediate Period, c. 100 - 400 AD

These rare feathered dowels likely symbolized ears of maize. Constructed of tiny feathers looped onto cotton and wrapped around wooden shafts, they were once covered with maize husks. The Janssen Collection includes a unique group of seven feather-covered wooden dowels once wrapped in maize leaves, plausibly symbolizing ears of maize. Their meaning is debated: they may be ritual offerings or samples of feather workers' craft. See Expanded Description in the online catalog. In good condition, mounted in an acrylic box.

Provenance:
A Private Collection, New York, NY, acquired in 1989
Fine Arts of Ancient Lands, New York, NY, acquired in New York the 1970s.
Jean Leon, France

Heights: ranging from 9 to 15 inches

More Information: There is another group in the Paul and Dora Janssen Collection at Museum MAS.
"Like many of the objects in this exhibition, this little collection is exceptional - the only set, in fact, encountered by the author during his study of Andean art. It consists of seven pieces of wood onto which have been glued a number of feathers, sometimes of a single color. The collection was wrapped in maize leaves. It is plausible to suggest that the items are meant to represent ears of maize. But why? One theory is that these are offerings, comparable with those generally found in a funerary context. But in that case, why use artificial ears when many tombs contain the real ones? Another explanation is that these are feather workers' samples. We know that a similar custom prevailed among weavers: some tombs have yielded looms with fragments of work attached, as well as swatches formed of pieces of material sewn together and displaying a variety of weaving techniques. Finally, it could be that the objects indicate the deceased's occupation and accompanied the feather worker on his passage into the afterlife." Le Fort, Genevieve, ed., Masters of the Americas: In Praise of the Pre-Columbian Artists - the Dora and Paul Janssen Collection, 5 Continents Editions, 2005, pages 201, entry written by Sergio Purini.


Estimate: $6,000 - $8,000.

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