Nasca Inlaid Ivory and Shell Figure

Saul and Marsha Stanoff, Tarzana, acquired in the 1970s or 1980s

Thence by descent to the present owner

Carved from a lustrous sperm whale tooth, this standing female figure was likely clothed in miniature textiles denoting the owner's social standing. The small figure's presence is animated by the inlay eyes and carved features and is adorned with a mussel shell headdress secured with black resin. Such figurines in shell and ivory are similar to the larger ceramic figures of the same posture, and are also depicted on painted ceramics.

“The carving of a ritual figurine from the tooth of a gigantic marine creature certainly carried extra spiritual significance” (Dorie Reents- Budet, Exploring Art of the Ancient Americas, The John Bourne Collection, The Walters Art Museum, 2012, p. 163).

For similar figures, see two figures in the collection of the American Museum of Natural History, New York, (41.2/7983, for the shorter figure 41.2/7854; shown in Craig Morris, Adriana von Hagen, The Inka Empire and Its Andean Origins, 1993, New York, p. 87, fig. 76). See also the figure in the Walters Art Museum, (2009.20.7) shown in Dorie Reents-Budet, Exploring Art of the Ancient Americas, The John Bourne Collection, Baltimore, 2012, p. 163, cat. no. 131.