Page 311 - Perú indígena y virreinal

decorated with relief-work, carved frames for mirrors as well as vessel holders and stands, shaped into animal forms and encrusted with shells.
The central part of the Peruvian coast saw the emergence of the Chancay culture, typified by its abundant ceramic output and the fine quality of its textiles. In its oldest sculptures, the dominant colours are black or red on white, whilst on later pieces they only used black on either cream or white. Unlike the ceramic work produced by the other, previously mentioned cultures, the firing of Changay pottery was of inferior quality, resulting in coarser, cruder pieces. Typically, they produced round cooking pots and oval shaped pitchers and jugs, occasionally decorated with small figures. They also made many small, hollow ceramic idols, known as chuchimilco, which they later dressed in cotton and wool garments, as well as other little figures representing scenes from everyday life, among them, groups of people sailing in reed canoes.
the incas [1450-1533]
Lisy Kuon
The Incas defined themselves as sacred descendants of the sun, dominating and governing a territory that they defined as “Tawantinsuyo” or “The Four Corners of the World”, that covered an area that includes five modern day South American Republics and spread from the mountains of Ecuador and part of Colombia to the north, to the centre of Chile to the south. The Pacific Ocean formed its western edge whilst the eastern borders were to be found in the Amazon and Chaco (Argentina) basins.
Inca civilisation, whose power was relatively short-lived, lasting from 1440 until the arrival of the Spaniards in 1532, was one of the five great Autonomous Civilisations of world history. With Cusco as its capital, this culture astonished the Spanish with their advanced technology, specifically, the construction of roads and bridges and water management and hydraulics. The new arrivals also marvelled at the way they were able to move people around from region to region, their knowledge and management of the agricultural calendar as well as the domestication of plants and animals. If to this we also add the evolution of their plumbing system to near perfection and their skills with clay, textiles and other art forms, all developed over a very short period, then still today their achievements will seem incredible.
The technical and artistic feats of the Incas were the consequence of an evolutionary process in the Andes that had lasted thousands of years. They were the cultural inheritors of previous Andean states and civilisations, as archaeological research has confirmed.
In the 15th Century, art, and specifically potting technology in the Andes had reached its height. Highly specialised master potters, possibly trained in official workshops in Cusco were in charge of all things clay related. In societies with a hierarchical political structure, such as the Incas, production and resource management was centrally controlled.
In Inca pottery, the variety of form and decoration corresponded to the diversity of its uses and functions whilst these in turn corresponded to the social and political demand of the state and its subjects. Ceramic ware had numerous functions, which ranged from domestic to religious. It was also evidently used as a conduit for Inca ideology. The finest, most elegant pieces, beautifully decorated, were associated with the ruling elite, those who held political and / or religious power.
Inca ceramics had eleven basic forms. The most representative of these were the aribalos, the most common vessels, which varied greatly in size, shape, glaze and decoration. The Peruvian researcher, Max Uhle, gave them this name due to their resemblance to Greek receptacles. Shaped like pyramids, their conical base gave them stability on uneven ground. They were used to ferment “chicha”, a corn liquor that was used in ceremonies. Typically, they were painted with a variety of symbols including condors and flowers, whilst on the upper part they were decorated with depictions of feline heads, the symbol of rain, natural forces and power in the Inca belief system.
The Inca bowls and basins were as diverse as the aribalos. In profile somewhat like an opened out plate, they could have straight or curved sides. Once there was a great variety in both size and decoration. Most commonly they were adorned with flora and fauna, the most common forms being basically zoomorphic, with bird heads and tails, big cats and snakes that seemed to emerge from the rim of the bowl being the most usual.
The Qeros, ceremonial goblets whose cylindrical form of varying size and shape had long been traditional, as can be seen in the Tiawanacun pieces, dating from 400 to 1100 BC. They tended to be made in pairs, the masculine and feminine forms symbolising one of the constant motifs in Andean culture, opposing yet complimentary forces. The pre-Hispanic qeros had been made out of fine clay, following centuries of previous cultural tradition. They were also made from wood, decorated with geometric incisions and with a natural finish. During the period of the vice-royalty, in the 16th, 17th and 18th Centuries, the descendants of the Incas continued to make them from wood, this time with coloured figurative designs, thus ensuring a continuation of pre-Columbine ceremonial tradition.
Stone was another medium with which Incas worked skilfully. They used it in their monuments, dwellings and to make both large and small scale sculptures as objects of ritual, serving a ceremonial purpose. Animals such as the puma were depicted, whilst ceremonial bowls and platters were decorated with serpents or condors in relief work. Many, many other stone pieces have been found; some that suggest boards for games, or toys and models and a large number of other whose purpose has yet to be determined.
the life cycle
Alicia Alonso
In the Andes, men and women formed a complementary whole that was capable of building up one of the most important cultural developments in the region. Their efforts can today be appreciated in their peerless artistic production and the countless number of legends that comprise their oral tradition.
Their lives, like those of so many other human groups was full of pleasure and pain that seemed to merge the past with the present, as we shall be able to see in the various halls of this exhibition.
The most representative social nucleus in the Andes was, without doubt, the “Ayllu” or family group, the basis for relationship and economic strategies as well as providing the setting for their religious beliefs and magic. Life in these territories was thus organised from a communal and collective perspective, with all the members of the ayllu benefiting equally and where the notion of private property was inexistent.
The land—the Pachamama—, water, the harvests and the fruit they collected were shared out amongst them. Even the various elites who throughout early history dominated the inhabitants of the region had to respect the concept of “reciprocity” in order to maintain their status and privileges.
Their economic activities were centred around a life cycle based on agriculture both in the mountains and on the coast, where the yungas, who were essentially more farmers than fishermen, had, since the earliest times, achieved great stability in their methods of cultivation. Water management and the use of fertilisers rich in organic components and minerals, such as guano—bird excrement—or anchoveta—anchovy fish meal-, contributed greatly to such success.
Products typical of hot coastal climates, like cotton, pineapple, peanuts and avocados were traded with those from the mountains—potatoes, beans and corn.
The presence of women within both daily life and the part dedicated to ritual is evident in a large quantity of their artistic expression. They appear as cooks, water carriers, and chichas or nursemaids, thus confirming that tasks were divided along gender lines. Allusions to fertility, sex and reproduction were represented in numerous pieces, as one
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