Cleveland Museum of Art

Backrest of a Litter

Date

1185–1275 (radiocarbon date, 95.4% probability)

Medium

mixed media: wood, gold alloy, pigment, shell inlay

Culture

Central Andes, North Coast, Chimú people, late Intermediate period

Department

Art of the Americas

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This rare, dramatic object served as the back support of a litter carried by human porters, a mode of transport reserved for honored members of many societies without draft animals or wheeled vehicles. The simple, bold figures—perhaps a Chimú lord and four officials—all wear wide collars, tunics, and crescent headdresses that are either brightly painted or covered with golden but now-corroded sheet metal. The holes at the bottom probably served as lashing points for a beam that supported the litter's seat. Cinnabar, a toxic mercuric sulfide, was used to color the red background and faces of the figures.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.