South America before European colonization (before c. 1492)

Inverse-Face Beaker, 10th-11th century, Sicán (Lambayeque), Peru, gold, 20 x 18.1 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art) — […]

Inverse-Face Beaker

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Introduction to the Chimú culture

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Introduction to Andean Cultures

Detail, Keru Vessel, Inka, lacquered wood, Colonial, Peru (Brooklyn Museum) Keru Cup. Inka. Colonial. Wood; lacquered, 7 3/8 x 6 15/16inches / 18.7 x 17.6cm (Brooklyn Museum) — […]

Keru Vessel

Monkey with Spiral Tail, Nasca Geoglyph, approximately 2000 years old. Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0. — […]

Nasca Geoglyphs

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Feline-Head Bottle

Sculptural ceramic ceremonial vessel that represents a dog, c. 100-800 C.E., Moche, Peru, 180 mm high (Museo Larco). This spotted dog is represented in several scenes of Moche art accompanying Ai Apaec, the Moche mythological hero. — […]

Moche culture, an introduction

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Moche Portrait Head Bottle

Pair of Earflares, Winged Messengers, c. 3rd-7th century, Moche, Peru, gold, turquoise, sodalite, shell, 8 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art) — […]

Pair of Earflares, Winged Messengers

Inka ushnus: landscape, site and symbol in the Andes — […]

Inka ushnus: landscape, site and symbol in ...

Kayapó headdress (detail) — […]

Kayapó Headdress: a glimpse of life in ...

Doe Shaman Effigy, Costa Rica/Nicaragua, c. 500 B.C.E.-300 C.E., ceramic, 32 x 26 x 18 cm (Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University) (photo: Bruce M. White) — […]

Doe Shaman Effigy

Mirror Pendant in the Form of a Bat-Human, from Grave 5, Sitio Conte, Coclé Province, Panama, gold, c. 850, 3 11/16” x 3 3/16” x 1 1/8” (Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University) — […]

Mirror Pendant in the Form of a ...

Munduruku headdress (detail) — […]

Mundurukú Headdress: a glimpse of life in ...

All-T’oqapu Tunic, Inka, 1450–1540, camelid fiber and cotton, 90.2 x 77.15 cm (Dumbarton Oaks, Washington D.C.) — […]

All-T’oqapu Tunic

Machu Picchu, Peru, c. 1450–1540 (photo: Sarahh Scher, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) — […]

Machu Picchu

Maize cobs, Inka, c. 1440–1533, Sheet metal/repoussé, metal alloys, 25.7 x 6 x 9 cm (Ethnological Museum, Berlin) (photo: Ethnological Museum, Berlin, CC BY-NC-SA) — […]

Maize cobs

Double-jambed door, Qorikancha, Cusco, c. 1440-1540 (photo: Sarahh Scher, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) — […]

City of Cusco

Archaeological site of Chavín de Huántar (photo: Sharon odb, CC BY-SA 3.0) — […]

Chavín de Huántar

Detail of border figure 61, Nasca, Mantle ("The Paracas Textile"), 100-300 C.E., cotton, camelid fiber, 58-1/4 x 24-1/2 inches / 148 x 62.2 cm, found south coast, Paracas, Peru (Brooklyn Museum) — […]

The Paracas Textile