Lot 34

Tiwanaku Polychrome Jar with Handle

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Lot 34
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Tiwanaku Polychrome Jar with Handle
Tiwanaku Polychrome Jar with Handle
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Tiwanaku Polychrome Jar with Handle

Estimate: $400 - $600

Starting Bid: $175

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

Pre-Columbian, South America, Bolivia/Peru, Tiwanaku culture, ca. 500 to 1000 CE. A robust globular jar of hand-built earthenware, its swelling body encircled by a program of polychrome geometric ornament rendered in deep red-orange and black against a pale buff slip. Nested triangles, concentric diamond forms, and bold chevron registers animate the upper shoulder. The abbreviated cylindrical neck bears additional banded patterning, and a single loop handle arches to one side. This geometric vocabulary is characteristic of the Tiwanaku horizon's visual language, in which angular, interlocking forms carried cosmological resonance tied to the imperial cult at Lake Titicaca. Likely a serving or storage vessel, perhaps associated with the ritual consumption of chicha, this jar carries the assertive graphic confidence of a tradition that shaped Andean artistic production across centuries. Size: 8" D x 7.8" H (20.3 cm D x 19.8 cm H)

Provenance: private Fresno, California, USA Collection, acquired August 2021 via Artemis Gallery, Louisville, Colorado, USA; ex-private Toluca Lake, California, USA collection, before 2000

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Item # 202605

  • Condition: Good. Chipping to spout’s rim. A hole has been patched below the spout on vessel’s body. Fading to painted motif as shown. Otherwise, good condition.

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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