Previous image preload Next image preload
Back to catalog
Lot 21A
image_0 image_1
Colima Pottery Flutes - Perched Birds & Owl, Pair of Playable Aerophones
Colima Pottery Flutes - Perched Birds & Owl, Pair of Playable Aerophones
image_0 image_1

Pre-Columbian, West Mexico, Colima, ca. 300 BCE – 300 CE. A pair of earthenware flutes from West Mexico, each fashioned as a small musical instrument that still answers to breath. The larger is a tubular aerophone surmounted by three birds perched in a row along its spine, their rounded bodies modeled with applied pellet eyes, a fluted lower register hinting at finger stops below. Its companion is more compact, conceived in the form of an owl, the creature's broad face and ridged brow rising at one end while paired tone holes pierce the elongated body. Both wear the buff-to-ochre slip and earthen incrustation of long burial. More than ornaments, these were sounding things, voices for ritual and procession, perhaps summoning rain or accompanying the dead. Their survival as playable instruments lends them a rare and quiet intimacy. Size of larger (three birds): 7.5" W x 2.5" H x 1.8" D (19.1 cm W x 6.3 cm H x 4.6 cm D).

The peoples of Colima, in the shaft-tomb tradition of West Mexico, are celebrated above all for their ceramic art, the rotund dogs, warriors, and genre figures placed with the dead. Musical instruments survive in smaller numbers, yet sound held deep ritual weight across Mesoamerica: flutes, whistles, and ocarinas voiced the presence of gods and ancestors. Birds and owls carried particular charge, the owl often linked to night, death, and the underworld, the perched birds perhaps evoking flight between earthly and celestial realms. That both examples remain playable is uncommon for objects of this antiquity and offers a direct, audible thread back to ceremonies two millennia gone.

Provenance: private Colorado, USA collection

SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).

PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.

Item # 202961

  • Condition: Good. Both have been repaired with some minor chipping along visible break lines. Chipping to horns of owl and beaks of birds with some possible areas of small restoration to birds. Weathering to surfaces as shown. Both still playable with good remaining detail and scattered earthen deposits.

Accepted Forms of Payment:

ACH, American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Auction House will ship, at Buyer's expense

by Artemis Fine Arts
June 25, 2026 9:00 AM MDT
686 S. Taylor Avenue
Suite 108
Louisville, CO, US 80027

Artemis Fine Arts

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 30% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $20,000