Skip Navigation

Qero Cup

Arts of the Americas

These two ceramic vessels convey the importance of llamas among the ancient Andean cultures. The Lambayeque example representing a man on a llama is unusual, since llamas are normally used as pack animals and are only employed as mounts by merchants during river crossings. Perhaps this vessel represents such a merchant.

The Wari ceremonial cup also depicts a domesticated llama. The gold disc attached to the rope around its neck underscores the animal’s value and ritual importance.
CULTURES Wari or Tiwanaku
MEDIUM Ceramic, pigment
  • Place Found: Tiahuanaco, Bolivia
  • DATES 400–900
    PERIOD Pre-Spanish
    DIMENSIONS 7 1/8 x 5 7/8 x 6 in. (18.1 x 14.9 x 15.2 cm)  (show scale)
    COLLECTIONS Arts of the Americas
    ACCESSION NUMBER 44.98
    CREDIT LINE Henry L. Batterman Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Kero-shaped cup decorated with a llama figure and geometrical designs. Condition: good
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Wari. Qero Cup, 400–900. Ceramic, pigment, 7 1/8 x 5 7/8 x 6 in. (18.1 x 14.9 x 15.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Henry L. Batterman Fund, 44.98. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 44.98_bw.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 44.98_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.
    Wari. <em>Qero Cup</em>, 400–900. Ceramic, pigment, 7 1/8 x 5 7/8 x 6 in. (18.1 x 14.9 x 15.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Henry L. Batterman Fund, 44.98. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 44.98_bw.jpg)