Item: Shaman Medicine Cup
Material: Ceramic
Dimensions: 130mm x 160mm x 170mm 920g
Era: 200-800CE
Culture: Luna
Region: Ometepe
Condition: Excellent
Description: Bichrome Shaman medicine cup. Decorated with motif tattoos and holding a mortar and pestle. This was a vessel used by Shaman to serve herbal medicines.
Provenance: Acquired in Nicaragua by a private collector in 1976
To ensure authenticity the subject piece was examined with a Leica MZ 7.5 stereoscopic microscope.
All or some of the following elements were found and photographed.
One or more photos from the examination is included in the photo gallery
- Alkaline mineral accretions
- Fine root hairs in the minute crevasses
- Obvious signs of antiquity in the glazed surfaces
- Sharp edges polished by burial erosion caused by millennia of seismic activity
- Oxidization consistent with the age of the item
- Lifeless insect larvae in the minute crevasses
- Manganese dioxide accretions as illustrated in the video link below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFjc0r6v_Ok