Inka Ceramic Figure
Artifact # 96.2.13 Described as Hand-made
pottery and is thought to be a broken vessle top.
Most of our information about how Inka People looked and dressed comes from figurines,
statues, paintings and the work of the Spanish. We can learn lots just from looking
at this figure. Note the earspools. The Inka, and many other people around the
world tatooed and pierced their bodies to decorate themselves. Some of these tatooes
and jewelry had religious or social meaning. For example, a young person looking
for a spouse would wear specific types of jewelry or body paint to signify their
availability. Do you live in a place where people signal social meanings through
jewelry or other decoration? What kind of meanings are intended? What other deductions
can you make about the appearance of the Incas from looking at this figure?
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