Breastplate in the Shape of a Shirt

900–1100 CE
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
This breastplate, made of six different pieces of gold sheet hammered from behind (repoussé) to create the geometric design, may have been made expressly for burial. If worn in life, however, sewn to a cotton tunic or shirt, it would have provided some protective coverage as armor. The geometric designs mimic those of finely woven tunics.



Este pectoral, compuesto por seis pedazos de hoja de oro que fueron repujadas desde la parte posterior (repoussé) de manera a crear el motivo geométrico, probablemente haya sido elaborado intencionalmente para el entierro. Sin embargo, si hubiera sido llevado puesto por una persona viva, y cosido a una túnica de algodón o a una camisa, hubiera podido servir de protección, como una armadura. Los diseños geométricos reproducen los de las túnicas finamente tejidas.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Breastplate in the Shape of a Shirt
  • Date: 900–1100 CE
  • Geography: Peru
  • Culture: Lambayeque (Sicán)
  • Medium: Gold
  • Dimensions: H. 23 5/8 × W. 23 5/8 in. (60 × 60 cm)
  • Classification: Metalwork-Ornaments
  • Credit Line: Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Antropología e Historia del Perú, Lima, Peru, Ministerio de Cultura del Perú (M10649 a, b, c, d, e)
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing