Chimú. <em>Vessel with Two Fishermen in a Reed Boat</em>, 1100–1470. Ceramic, 9 3/4 x 11 x 7 in. (24.8 x 27.9 x 17.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. Eugene Schaefer, 36.308. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 36.308_acetate_bw.jpg)

Chimú. Vessel with Two Fishermen in a Reed Boat, 1100–1470. Ceramic, 9 3/4 x 11 x 7 in. (24.8 x 27.9 x 17.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. Eugene Schaefer, 36.308. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 36.308_acetate_bw.jpg)

DOWNLOAD

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Tell me more about these guys!

You're looking at a Chimú jar from about 1100-1400 . For the Chimú of Peru's north coast, the ocean provided both food and status objects such as precious shells. On this vessel, two men sit in a traditional type of boat that is still used today by modern Peruvian fisherman.

Chimú ceramics are generally mold-made blackwares. Painted designs on Chimú ceramics are rare.

I think the coil-building technique is quite impressive!

Vessel with Two Fishermen in a Reed Boat

Arts of the Americas

On the North Coast of Peru, ancient Chimú fishermen plied the waters of the Pacific Ocean in reed boats to catch fish and shellfish, and hunt marine animals. On this finely modeled and highly polished blackware vessel, two fishermen are depicted wearing conical hats and holding oars. Contemporary fishermen in Peru still use this same type of boat, called a caballito de totora.

CULTURE Chimú

MEDIUM Ceramic

Place Made: North Coast, Peru

DATES 1100–1470

PERIOD Pre-Spanish

DIMENSIONS 9 3/4 x 11 x 7 in. (24.8 x 27.9 x 17.8 cm) mount (display dimensions): 10 1/4 x 12 x 7 in. (26 x 30.5 x 17.8 cm) (show scale)

COLLECTIONS Arts of the Americas

ACCESSION NUMBER 36.308

CREDIT LINE Gift of Mrs. Eugene Schaefer

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Blackware ceramic jar in the form of a large tortora reed boat with two men sitting on top paddling. There is a looped handle and spout in the center.

EXHIBITIONS

American Art

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION Chimú. Vessel with Two Fishermen in a Reed Boat, 1100–1470. Ceramic, 9 3/4 x 11 x 7 in. (24.8 x 27.9 x 17.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. Eugene Schaefer, 36.308. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 36.308_acetate_bw.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 36.308_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Tell me more about these guys!

Chimú ceramics are generally mold-made blackwares. Painted designs on Chimú ceramics are rare.

I think the coil-building technique is quite impressive!