A terracotta painted pottery bowl decorated in dark brown pigments with four crouching stylised quadrupeds, between the painted rim above and concentric circles below, all against a light cream background. The exterior undecorated.
 
Pre-Columbian Peru, Northern Highlands, Cajamarca: Circa 1000 - 1400 AD.
 
Complete and intact.
Width at rim 16 cms (6.3 ins)
 
Provenance: Ex. Jack Bregman collection, NYC. Acquired prior to 1969 while in the Peace Corps. By descent to current owner. Collection # 044, 063, 071.
 
The Cajamarca bowls were produced by the Cajamarca culture, a distinct pre-Inca civilization that flourished in the northern highlands of present-day Peru. The crab designs are among the most distinctive and may have symbolic or religious significance, possibly linked to water, fertility, or coastal influence, as the Cajamarca region maintained trade and cultural connections with coastal societies like the Moche and Lambayeque.