Mask for funerary bundle, Chancay culture - Peru, 1100-1440 A.D

It is a mask with human features sitting upon a bundle containing the mummy of a deceased. The embalming of bodies was common in pre-Hispanic Andean cultures. Carved with care, this piece respects the codes of representation of Peruvian fardo (bundle) masks. Its geometric face, covered with significant traces of red paint, is in a quadrangular shape and the physiognomic details are reduced to the essentials. The large elliptical eyes are inlaid with white shells and decorated in their center with a black pupils.

Provenance
With M. J.T., Geneva
Private collection, Switzerland, acquired from the above in 1985
Comes with a certificate of authenticity dated 1985