Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
Tairona-style pendants are among the most spectacular of all ancient American gold ornaments, in part because of the detail achieved with lost-wax casting. The traits of the figure pendant include a lower lip ornament and a headdress in which two bats hang upside down. Although called caciques (chieftains)-that is, ruler portraits-the meaning of such figures is not well understood. Bird imagery was important in the isthmian region in ancient times and remains so today. For instance, among the modern Bribri of Costa Rica, the principal creator deity (Sibo) takes the form of a buzzard or kite who wears a collar. Collars are standard features of ancient bird pendants, like the one shown here.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
160506
label
Figure Pendant
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
160506
contentType
object
title
Figure Pendant
description
Tairona-style pendants are among the most spectacular of all ancient American gold ornaments, in part because of the detail achieved with lost-wax casting. The traits of the figure pendant include a lower lip ornament and a headdress in which two bats hang upside down. Although called caciques (chieftains)-that is, ruler portraits-the meaning of such figures is not well understood. Bird imagery was important in the isthmian region in ancient times and remains so today. For instance, among the modern Bribri of Costa Rica, the principal creator deity (Sibo) takes the form of a buzzard or kite who wears a collar. Collars are standard features of ancient bird pendants, like the one shown here.
date
900–1550
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60751133
genreSpecific
Metalwork
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 6.2 x 6.1 x 2.5 cm (2 7/16 x 2 3/8 x 1 in.)
cul
Colombia, Tairona
accession
1998.3
Source extras
tec
cast gold
tombstone
Figure Pendant, 900–1550. Colombia, Tairona. Cast gold; overall: 6.2 x 6.1 x 2.5 cm (2 7/16 x 2 3/8 x 1 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1998.3
collection
AA - Intermediate Region
formerAccessionNumbers
862.1994
citations
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art, “Painting by 18th-century Italian Master Gaetano Gandolfi among Works Added to CMA Collection,” March 24, 1998, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives.
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:20:23.564000
sourceId
160506
dept
Art of the Americas
coll
AA - Intermediate Region
med
cast gold
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
86c38ce751bdb501