Head, Tumaco, Tolita Island, Border Between Ecuador And Colombia, 500 Bc-500 Ad

Head of a young dignitary, displaying a beautiful, gentle, inward expression. Slightly stretched eyes, closed mouth, open forehead covered by a veil. He wears circular ear ornaments indicating his important rank in the clan. Beige and brown terracotta, marks of time. Tumaco, Tolita Island, border between Ecuador and Colombia, 500 BC – 500 AD. Dimensions: 5.5 × 5.5 cm (with base: 9 cm) Provenance: former private collection, Paris. Sold with certificate of authenticity from the expert Serge Reynes. Guarantee of origin and period. "The Tumaco – La Tolita culture, established between present-day Colombia and Ecuador, is renowned for its realistic and fine representations of dignitaries. The heads, often detached from votive or funerary bodies, express a marked interiority, linked to ritual practices and ancestor worship. This head, with its collected expression, the frontal veil and the ear ornaments, illustrates the importance given to social and spiritual authority within the clan." * Shipping costs on estimate.