Cleveland Museum of Art

Beaker with Frogs

Date

900–1100

Medium

gold, hammered

Culture

Central Andes (Peru), Lambayeque (Sicán) people, 10th century-12th century

Department

Art of the Americas

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This beaker was created by an artist of the Lambayeque culture of Peru's north coast. High-relief frogs grace the surface, which has a dramatically flaring rim as well as a silvery color, the result of silver in the alloy. If such beakers were used in life—that is, not created exclusively for the lavish tombs in which they have been found in quantities—they may have figured in feasting events that were central to late pre-Hispanic political, social, and religious life. This beaker was probably formed using a single sheet of metal over a wooden form.

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