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Nose ornament

100 BCE–500 CE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 362
Metalsmiths of the Vicús culture excelled at creating ornaments using the repoussé technique, in which a hammered metal sheet was cut and worked from behind to achieve raised designs, often featuring felines and birds. Here, a pair of cats gaze out at the viewer. In contrast to the depiction of felines elsewhere in ancient Andean art, Vicús cats appear decidedly more personable and seem to lack the ferocity characteristic of other traditions in ancient Peru. Their claws are more like rounded toes, and their fangs are kept hidden. The circular shapes with center nubs may represent lucuma fruits (see, for example, MMA accession number 1978.412.205).

Nose ornaments reached their peak of popularity in ancient Peru in the first millennium of the Common Era. They were particularly important regalia for individuals of high status in the Moche culture, neighbors and contemporaries of the Vicús on Peru’s far north coast (see, for example, MMA 1979.206.1225). In addition to the Moche, Vicús artists drew inspiration from multiple sources, including the earlier Cupisnique culture as well as from contemporaneous cultures to the south, including Virú, Gallinazo, and Salinar. Yet Vicús artists created their own distinctive style in both metalworking and ceramics.

The lustrous gold surface of this ornament is deceiving as the elemental composition is copper 49.1%, silver 7.2%, and gold 43.7%.

References and Further Reading

Ikehara, Hugo. "La colección vicús en el Museo Central." Revista Moneda 193 (2023), pp. 56-63.

Kaulicke, Peter. “The Vicús-Mochica Relationship.” In Andean Archaeology III, edited by William H. Isbell and Helene H. Silverman, pp. 85-111. Boston: Springer, 2006.

Makowski, Krzysztof, Christopher B. Donnan, Ivan Amaro Bullon, Luis Jaime Castillo, Magdalena Diez Canseco, Otto Elespuro Revoredo, and Juan A. Murro Mena. “Vicús.” Colección Arte y Tesoros del Perú. Lima: Banco de Crédito, Peru, 1994.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Nose ornament
  • Artist: Vicús artist(s)
  • Date: 100 BCE–500 CE
  • Geography: Peru
  • Culture: Vicús
  • Medium: Gold
  • Dimensions: H. 3 3/8 × W. 4 3/8 × D. 1/4 in. (8.6 × 11.1 × 0.6 cm)
  • Classification: Metal-Ornaments
  • Credit Line: Jan Mitchell and Sons Collection, Gift of Jan Mitchell, 1991
  • Object Number: 1991.419.50
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing

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