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Inhabitants of the underworld

Room E2, Vitrine E26


Ceramic
Mochica
Peruvian Northern Coast
Florescent Epoch (1 AD – 800 AD)
ML004212, ML004321, ML004323, ML004324

These bottles represent the inhabitants of the underworld, those we consider dead. However, according to the Andean world view, they remained active in the underworld. Their vitality is apparent in their ability to continue “inseminating”, as can be seen in these sculptural vessels, in which cadaverous men are masturbating in order to produce fertilizing semen.