Sculptural vase with representation of warrior head with headdress

Among pre-Columbian societies, only the Mochica produced portraits in the strict sense of the word. The so-called “huaco portraits”, like the one here, have left us a valuable testimony regarding issues of of gender, still poorly understood in archaeological studies. Recent research based on the specificity of certain facial features and recurring marks suggest that some of the subjects were portrayed at different stages of their lives. In the earlier representations of the human face it was not possible to identify them as specific individuals. Only after the Middle Mochica period did “huaco portraits” of recognizable personalities begin to appear more frequently. Their purpose seems to have been to perpetuate specific individuals who played important religious or military roles in society. Accessories and apparel, such as headdresses and ear spools, as those worn by the character portrayed in this vase, are clear evidence of this. (CP)