Lot 9A
Pre-Columbian, North Coast Peru, Chimu, ca. 1100 to 1470 CE. A painted wood disc, originally fashioned as the backing for a mirror, its surface now fully enveloped in the remains of white pigment. Cut from a single section of wood, the disc bears perforations where thin copper or bronze sheets would once have been fastened, providing the reflective surface. The application of pigment suggests it was not only functional but also carefully finished for ceremonial or elite use. Mirrors were among the most prized possessions of Chimu elites, serving as luxury items, ritual tools, and symbolic objects linked to water, sunlight, and the liminal space between the earthly and spiritual realms. Backings of wood or gourd with attached reflective metal sheets were often interred in tombs, underscoring their sacred role in burial and ritual practice. This piece, with its weathered face and surviving pigment, offers a rare glimpse into the material culture of Chimu craftsmanship and the symbolic life of Andean mirrors. Size: 5.75" L x 5.25" W (14.6 cm x 13.3 cm)
Provenance: private Colorado collection, USA; previously bequeathed to the Museum for Islamic Art, Jerusalem, Israel, stored for many years and exhibited in 1988; ex-Yosef A. Maiman collection, Consul of Peru A.H., acquired in 1993; ex-Kate Kemper collection, Switzerland, acquired in the 1940s or earlier
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#197063
- Condition: Four perforations to center as shown; two with remains of material used for attachment to mirror. Nicks, chips, and abrasions, as well as stable surface fissures and some fraying to edges, all commensurate with age. Trace remains of pigment.
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