Minneapolis Institute of Art

Vessel

Nasca artist

Date

100 BCE– 600 CE

Medium

Clay, pigments

Culture

Nasca

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

The chili pepper ( aji ) was one of the earliest domesticated plants in the Andes, with evidence of its presence by 4000 BCE. Used as a seasoning and preservative in Andean cuisine, peppers were also one of the most common images on ancient Nazca ceramics. Above the peppers encircling this vessel are Inca terns, seabirds that live along the Humboldt Current off the coast of Peru and Chile. In their distinctive orange beaks, they hold fish - perhaps anchovies. Nazca artists were inspired by nature but took liberties in representing its bounty. They often simplified or otherwise abstracted or altered forms to suit the needs of an object's functionality, image clarity, or aesthetic appeal. Nasca, Americas

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