Description:

Pre-Columbian, Ecuador, perhaps Bahia & Jamacoaque, ca 500 BCE to 500 CE; West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE to 300 CE. A group of three West Mexican and Ecuadorian pottery birds, comprising two Colima whistles and a bird-head element. The first is a Colima turkey whistle with a broad fanned tail and the second is a Colima bird figure with large concave horn-like crest elements and a tripod body - both whistles function. The third is a bird head from coastal Ecuador, it preserves tone holes from an ancient flute or whistle. Size of turkey: 3.5" L x 3.25" H (8.9 cm x 8.3 cm)

Provenance: private Colorado, USA collection; larger avians: ex-Arte Primitivo, New York, USA, 2024; ex-Rachelle Miller collection, Chicago, Illinois, USA, active in the 1960s - 1970s from various dealers; lone head: ex-Jeffrey Miller auction, Mt. Crawford, Virginia, USA, 2024

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#196890

  • Condition: Turkey whistle is professionally repaired with head reattached and right tip of flared tail has a restored nub. Left horn on the bird head is restored with new material. Smallest is a fragmentary piece from a flute or whistle and does not function.

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December 5, 2025 8:00 AM MST
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $20,000