Spout-and-Bridge Vessel in the Form of a Human Figure

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Spout-and-Bridge Vessel in the Form of a Human Figure

Culture Nazca

Title Spout-and-Bridge Vessel in the Form of a Human Figure

Date 1–500

Medium Clay and pigment

Dimensions Object: 7 1/4 × 8 1/2 in. (18.4 × 21.6 cm)
Overall: 7 1/4 x 8 1/2 in. (18.4 x 21.6 cm)

Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University

Accession Number 62.196

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About this Work

It is through knowledge of surrounding cultures that scholars identify the subject matter of most Nazca ceramics as religious. Without written documentation making specific interpretations is quite difficult as much of Nazca art is symbolic and abstract. Nazca religion seems to have centered upon the honoring of ancestors. In fact, much of their art that survives today was buried with their dead.

Characteristic of Nazca ceramics is the use of black outlining as well as earth tone pigments, such as brown, black, and white. While not seen in this example some Nazca ceramics can be quite colorful, with blues, greens, purples, and sometimes up to a dozen colors on a single object.

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Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Spout-and-Bridge Vessel in the Form of a Human Figure | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=62.196