Ceramic Chimú-Inka bottle. AD 1470–1533. Pacasmayo, Jequetepeque Valley, Peru. Latin American Archaeology, Beal-Steere Collection. UMMAA 6261.

Potters on Peru’s north coast produced a distinctive style of ceramics between AD 1470 and 1533. The region was under the control of the Inka Empire following their conquest of the powerful Chimor state. Local potters in imperial workshops produced a variety of ceramics: some imitated imperial Inka forms; others made local forms; and still others, like the potter who made this bottle, combined Inka motifs with local technologies and wares. These hybrid ceramics are known as Inka-Chimú ceramics. Joseph Beal Steere collected this example at the sacred center of Pacasmayo in Peru’s Jequetepeque Valley in the early 1870s. The flared rim and strap handles are characteristic of highland Inka ceramics, while the vessel shape, black color, and mold-building technology are features of Chimú ceramics. The designs on the vessel draw their inspiration from patterned textiles.

Back to Day 129 or continue to Day 131.

In honor of the University of Michigan’s 2017 bicentennial, we are celebrating the remarkable archaeological and ethnographic collections and rich legacy of research and teaching at the Museum of Anthropological Archaeology by posting one entry a day for 200 days. The entries will highlight objects from the collections, museum personalities, and UMMAA expeditions. The Kelsey Museum of Archaeology is also posting each day for 200 days on Twitter and Facebook (follow along at #KMA200). After the last post, an exhibition on two centuries of archaeology at U-M opens at the Kelsey. Visit the exhibit—a joint project of the UMMAA and the Kelsey—from October 18, 2017 to May 27, 2018.