Ceremonial sculpture vessel

Ceremonial vessel which represents a seated male figure, with his hands on his knees sitting on a stool that is, in turn, sitting on top of a bell-shaped pedestal. The figure is decorated with a great plate-shaped headdress, a necklace with geometrical motifs, earrings, nose rings and wristbands. This sculptural vessel matches a type characteristic of Manteña culture, which has mistakenly been called a “thurible” due to its base and hollow structure. They portray young male figures with a hieratic appearance, sitting on seats placed on a bell-shaped base. On other occasions, these figures seem to represent old people when they are portrayed chewing coca leaves, with swollen cheeks. Even though there is little data about the archaeological context for the finding of these pieces, which are currently part of private and museum collections, they probably represent shamans or local elite figures. Typical of this culture, and as can be seen in this example, the seats also have a U shape, which was a symbol of status and religious and political power. The archaeology and the ethnography of the Intermediate Area have demonstrated a long tradition of the use of these “power seats” by shamans.