Category Archives: vacation

Stirrup-Spout Vessel

There is a lot of pre-Columbian pottery on display in Lima’s Museo Larco.  Above is a stirrup-spout vessel, a design that originated some 3,000 to 4,000 years ago in South America.

Stirrup-Spout Vessel

These main vessels were pour-cast in a mold, and the stirrup-shaped spouts were handcrafted and attached to the main vessels.  The exteriors were then decoratively finished.

Stirrup-Spout Vessel

Not all ancient Peruvian pottery on display at Museo Larco is functional.  Some examples are entirely decorative.

Museo Larco pottery

Museo Larco pottery

There’s even an example of ancient Peruvian Corningware®:

Ancient Corningware® — just kidding

Actually, that above image is of a display stand in the museum.  In addition to pottery there are also examples of tapestry and decorative fish:

Museo Larco tapestry

Fish lures — Just kidding

Museo Larco is home to gold artifacts as well:

Museo Larco gold

Then there’s this stunning display of ancient Peruvian brain surgery:

Indications of brain surgery — Not kidding

Yes, these holes were made into the skulls of living people, people who continued to live well afterward as evidenced by the regeneration of bone material at the sites of the removals.

On Wednesday we’ll continue our tour of Museo Larco with images of the grounds, more gold artifacts, and even a very brief look at the erotic pottery collection.  Did that last one get your attention?  Until then, here’s one last pottery image for today:

Museo Larco pottery

Pre-Columbian pottery

The gallery exhibits of Museo Larco are chronologically ordered, so each area takes the visitor through ever-later periods of Peruvian history.

Tower of Bowls

Exhibits include everything from basic pottery bowl to pottery works of art.  There are even galleries devoted to pre-Columbian erotic pottery and gold artifacts, a glimpse of which I’ll give you next Wednesday.  There are also exhibits displaying more useful items, such as arrow and spear tips.

Arrow and spear heads

Not everything in Museo Larco is pre-Columbian, however.  There are more modern works depicting Christian themes and Spanish nobility.

Not everything here is pre-Columbian

Below is today’s slide show of Museo Larco exhibits.  Click on any image to enlarge and bring up today’s presentation.

Museo Larco collection

Pre-Columbian art

Pre-Columbian art

Museo Larco collection

Pre-Columbian art

Owls and Cats

Pre-Columbian art

Museo Larco collection

Pre-Columbian art

Museo Larco founded in 1926

Museo Larco is a logical stop when visiting Lima, Peru.  This museum dedicated to pre-Columbian art (meaning before Christopher Columbus’ visit to the New World in 1492) was founded in 1926, and today Museo Larco contains artifacts spanning some 4,000 years of Peruvian indigenous history, and cultural displays going back another 6,000 years before even that.

Museo Larco flowers

But before you get to all that history you’ll pass through the gardens of Museo Larco, including the flower-covered exterior walls of the museum.

Climbing the walls at Museo Larco

We’ll start touring the inside of the Larco and discover its treasures beginning Wednesday.  Today however I’m going to show off Larco’s magnificent flowers and cacti.  Click on any image below to enlarge an image and bring up today’s slide show:

Cactus at the Larco Museum

Cactus at the Larco Museum

Museo Larco flowers

Museo Larco flowers

Museo Larco flowers

Larco Museum flowers and cacti

Museo Larco flowers

Museo Larco flowers