Sea Turtle Pendant
Artist:
Unknown
Place made:Panama
General region:North and Central America
Culture: Coclé culture
Period: Pre-Columbian
Date: ca. A.D. 800-1200
Medium: Gold
Dimensions:
height: 5/8 in. (1.6 cm)
width: 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm)
depth: 3/4 in. (1.9 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Frederic Oppenheimer in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Marshall T. Steves, Sr., on the occasion of their golden anniversary
Object number: 98.6
Provenance: ex-collection of Mr. N. Tracy, Plantation, FL, by 1998; with Throckmorton Fine Arts, Inc., NYC, NY, by 1998; by purchase to Mr. and Mrs. Frederic Oppenheimer, San Antonio, TX, 1998; by gift to the San Antonio Museum of Art, 1998
Label Text
This gold pendant in the form a turtle was likely made using the lost wax cast method, which relies a series of earthenware molds to create an object. Gold objects such as this were buried with elite members of society in the Gran Coclé culture who lived in what is now modern Panama. The burying of such a spiritually and ecomically valuable object meant that the next generation of elites had to earn or create their own wealth (Bernadette Cap, 2022).
On view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
