Image: Tairona - Small Footed Bowl with Tiger Head Handles - Walters 482783 - Profile
Description: This miniature vessel consists of a small chamber atop four peg feet. Knobs on opposite sides are zoomorphic heads, likely either feline or saurian. The incised ornamentation of the vessel body consists of a percentage-sign-like motif, framed by fine impressed chevron banding motifs also seen in Tairona gold work. This decorative pattern, paired with heads facing opposite directions, is a fairly common motif in late Tairona art. It has been interpreted as a canoe, reflecting the importance of maritime trade among the Caribbean islands and potentially symbolizing a comparable 'mobility' through supernatural realms. As such, it is likely this small vessel was used to hold a hallucinogenic substance, likely in a powdered form.
Title: Small Footed Bowl with Tiger Head Handles
Credit: Walters Art Museum: Home page Info about artwork
Author: Anonymous (Tayrona)Unknown author
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Usage Terms: Public domain
License: Public domain
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