Stirrup Spout Vessel Depicting a Figure Costumed as a Crab c. 100 - 500

Curator: What a curious-looking piece! This is a ceramic stirrup spout vessel created by the Moche people sometime between 100 and 500 AD. Editor: It strikes me as so playful, despite its age. That central figure—it’s wonderfully bizarre. The contrast between the vessel's smooth form and the figure's linear depiction is visually engaging. Curator: Absolutely. What we see is a figure costumed as a crab, painted in a reddish-brown slip against the lighter clay. The stirrup spout form itself is significant—likely influencing the way liquids were poured. Considering that it comes from the Moche culture, from what is now the northern coast of Peru, makes you think about the rituals of daily life. Editor: I immediately consider the skill involved in achieving such detailed imagery on a curved surface, coupled with firing techniques available at the time. It’s difficult not to admire the dedication to process inherent to its creation. How was the labor divided, who fired these objects and who used them? These are the details I gravitate towards when I see a piece like this. Curator: Those considerations are essential to its complete story. The archaeological context helps us understand that ceramic vessels, like this one, often served as offerings in burials or as containers for important liquids or substances used in Moche ceremonies. The choice of depicting a figure dressed as a crab may signify cosmological beliefs and links to the maritime environment they lived within. Editor: I wonder how the contemporary Indigenous population perceive pieces like this, created by their ancestors, now held in trust within institutions. From raw materials sourced, created, and ultimately displaced to museums…it is quite something. Curator: Indeed, and thinking about its current location here at the Art Institute, you realize how far its journey has been through collections and cultural narratives, impacting those that now view it within this modern space. Editor: It really drives home how an object like this contains so much, doesn't it? Process, symbolism, historical weight. A very beautiful object. Curator: It is quite remarkable. Thank you for sharing your insights!