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Source Description
Sea lions commonly appear in Moche art as effigy vessels, like this appealing pup, or in complex scenes that often show them as the targets of human hunters. They may have been prized in part for the beach pebbles found in their stomachs; modern Peruvian folk healers consider such pebbles to have powerful medicinal qualities. Also, colonial-period natives believed that sea lions carried the dead to off-shore islands, an idea that could date to Moche times.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
171590
label
Sea Lion Pup Vessel
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
171590
contentType
object
title
Sea Lion Pup Vessel
description
Sea lions commonly appear in Moche art as effigy vessels, like this appealing pup, or in complex scenes that often show them as the targets of human hunters. They may have been prized in part for the beach pebbles found in their stomachs; modern Peruvian folk healers consider such pebbles to have powerful medicinal qualities. Also, colonial-period natives believed that sea lions carried the dead to off-shore islands, an idea that could date to Moche times.
date
200–850 CE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60761151
genreSpecific
Ceramic
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 19.7 x 15.5 x 16 cm (7 3/4 x 6 1/8 x 6 5/16 in.)
cul
Central Andes, North Coast, Moche people
accession
2014.375
Source extras
tec
ceramic and slip
tombstone
Sea Lion Pup Vessel, 200–850 CE. Central Andes, North Coast, Moche people. Ceramic and slip; overall: 19.7 x 15.5 x 16 cm (7 3/4 x 6 1/8 x 6 5/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of John and Agneta Solomon, 2014.375
collection
AA - Andes
didYouKnow
Moche potters were skilled at producing charming images using only red and white slip.
citations
citation
Lapiner, Alan C. <em>Art of Ancient Peru and Ecuador: A Sales Exhibition Organized in Cooperation with André Emmerich</em>. New York: Arts of the Four Quarters, Ltd, 1968.
page_number
fig. 29
citation
Lapiner, Alan C. <em>Pre-Columbian Art of South America</em>. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1976.
page_number
p. 128, fig. 277
citation
Bergh, Susan. “Acquisition Highlights 2014: Pre-Columbian and Native North American Art.” <em>Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em> 55, no. 2 (March/April 2015): 12-13.
page_number
Reproduced and Mentioned: p. 13
creditline
Gift of John and Agneta Solomon
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:48:50.055000
sourceId
171590
dept
Art of the Americas
coll
AA - Andes
med
ceramic and slip
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
1a330d511193c156