Ornament

Item number Sf607 from the MOA: University of British Columbia.

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Description

A sheet metal fragment of a zoomorphic head with embossed details. The head has a large protruding tongue and forward tilting crest or ear on top of the head. The mouth is wide open and the eye is tear-drop in shape. Raised dots outline the head.

History Of Use

May be a fragment from a headdress or standard like the one illustrated in Moseley (p.33). The tear-drop eye on the zoomorphic and humanoid figures is characteristic of Lambayeque style of the far north coast. This feature of Lambayeque Style is frequently found mixed with other features of the Chimu Style.

Narrative

Lambayeque or Early Chimu Style, Middle Horizon; 600-1000 C.E.

Iconographic Meaning

Appears to be the head of a feline-serpent. This type is usually joined to a sinuous body (Moseley; Emmerich), but the ear and head shape have a feline aspect. The feline-serpent appears in many contexts including that of the double-headed 'sky' serpent which arches across the heavens.