163 - AN ‘OWL-FACED SHAMAN WOMAN’ STIRRUP-SPOUT VESSEL, PAINTED POTTERY, MOCHE CULTURE

AN ‘OWL-FACED SHAMAN WOMAN’ STIRRUP-SPOUT VESSEL, PAINTED POTTERY, MOCHE CULTURE Scientific Analysis Report: A thermoluminescence analysis report issued by Laboratory Kotalla on 16 November 2025, based on sample number 18R250925, sets the manufacturing date of the sample taken to be 1180 years +/-14.7% ago, consistent with the dating above. A copy of the report accompanies this lot. Peru, 675-850 AD. Skillfully potted in the form of an anthropomorphic figure seated cross-legged, the hands crossed over the lap, dressed in voluminous robes and adorned with a beaded collar and a mantle covering the oversized head. The face is concealed by a large owl mask, distinguished by prominent round eyes and a small, curved beak. The hunched back set with a curved handle rising to an upright, straight spout. Provenance: Collection of Sigrid and Rolf Verlemann-Müller, Detmold, Germany, by 1980. A private collection in Germany, acquired from the above. Sigrid and Rolf Verlemann-Müller are noted German collectors with a particular interest in the arts and material cultures of Africa and Oceania. Alongside their collecting activities, they have been actively involved for the past three decades in the study and presentation of non-European art, contributing to exhibitions and publications at the Lippisches Landesmuseum in Detmold. Sigrid Verlemann-Müller further serves as chair of the Lippische Gesellschaft für Kunst. Condition: Overall good condition with expected wear, firing irregularities, minute chips along the rim of the spout, rubbing and losses to pigments, occasional surface scratches, signs of burial, expected cracks with associated professional repairs. A small hole from sample taking. German Export License: Ausfuhrgenehmigung Nr. 15672, dated 6 August 2026, has been granted. A copy of this document accompanies this lot. Weight: 432.5 g Dimensions: Height 20.2 cm The present vessel belongs to a distinctive group of Moche ceramics interpreted as representations of female healers and ritual specialists. The mantle drawn over the head is particularly suggestive: similarly dressed women appear in scenes associated with childbirth and healing, while some hold objects identified as sections of the psychoactive San Pedro cactus. Studies of ceramics excavated at Huaca de la Luna, together with related museum examples, have connected these figures with practices encompassing midwifery, divination, and the treatment of illness. The owl features introduce a further dimension of supernatural power. The bird’s ability to move and hunt in darkness may have contributed to its significance in Moche religious imagery, offering a potent image of perception beyond ordinary human sight. Particularly relevant is a vessel in the Peabody Museum (object number 16-62-30/F728) depicting an owl-faced woman surrounded by ritual equipment, which Sarahh Scher interprets as a healer transformed, or transforming, into an owl. Within this interpretive framework, the fusion of human and avian features on the present vessel may evoke the ritual specialist’s assumption of an animal’s powers. See Sarahh Scher, ‘The Achumera: Gender, Status, and the San Pedro Cactus in Moche Ceramic Motifs and Iconography’, in John E. Staller (ed.), Andean Foodways, 2021, pp. 250-251, fig. 9.9. Women’s importance in Moche ceremonial life is also supported by archaeological discoveries. At San José de Moro, richly furnished female burials contained elaborate ornaments and ceremonial goblets corresponding to those associated with priestesses in Moche art. These discoveries demonstrate that women could occupy positions of considerable religious authority. Such elite priestesses should be distinguished from the healers proposed for hooded ceramic figures, whose precise responsibilities remain debated. Together, however, the archaeological and visual evidence reveals a varied world of female ritual participation, providing a compelling context for the present vessel and its evocative combination of human presence and animal power. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s Paris, 7 June 2005, lot 320 Price: EUR 6,600 or approx. EUR 10,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: An Early Mochica owl vessel, circa 300-100 BC Expert remark: Compare the related stirrup-handle avian form and painted decoration. Note the similar size (17.5 cm). Due to length restriction on Drouot this entry is shortened. For full description please visit www.zacke.at.