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Bequest of Elizabeth Huth Coates.

Pair of Earspools

Bequest of Elizabeth Huth Coates.
Bequest of Elizabeth Huth Coates.
Contact us at copyright@samuseum.org for rights and reproductions of this image. Photography by Ansen Seale.

Pair of Earspools

Artist:
Place made:Peru
General region:South America
Culture: Moche
Date: ca. A.D. 300
Dimensions:
h. 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm); w. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm), each
Credit Line: Bequest of Elizabeth Huth Coates
Object number: 97.1.37.a-b
Provenance: with Elizabeth Hugh Coates (nee Maddux) (1909-1996), San Antonio, TX, by 1997; by bequest of the Elizabeth Huth Coates estate to the San Antonio Museum of Art, 1997
Label Text
This pair of Moche earspools are made of gold and have inlays of shell and lapis. Other earspools of this type typically have a centrally placed figure, but this feature is either missing or was never part of this set. Gold was a highly valued raw material and an indicator of elite status among the Moche. Lapis may also have signified status as the only source of it in South America is in Chile. (Bernadette Cap, 2020)
On view


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.