Big jar Male Head. - nice decoration - Recuay, Peru, 200 - 700 AD Terracotta and pigments 17,5 cm height and 18 cm diameter Provenance: Private collection, Romans, France 1970 - 1980. With Spanish export license. Condition: Very good, not broken, only a small chips in the base and lib. The Recuay culture developed in the upper part of the Santa River valley, near the southern end of the Callejón de Huaylas, in the highlands of northern Peru. This is a semi-tropical valley that lies between the so-called Cordillera Blanca and Cordillera Negra. Stonework is considered one of Recuay's greatest achievements. In addition to complex ornamental architectural motifs, the Recuay made various pieces, such as cups with pedestals, some with two-millimeter thick walls and relief decoration, plaques and even models of buildings. They also carved monoliths and stone sculptures with motifs such as trophy heads, felines, mythical animal designs (feline-serpents), among others. They were perfect in both bas-relief and volume carving. In ceramics, they stood out especially for the type of clay they used, kaolin, which is one of the finest and most complex to work with. Among the forms, sculptural pitchers, cups with pedestal, lidded amphorae and vases stand out. These were decorated with negative painting, polychrome or modeling, presenting motifs such as felines, birds, the so-called "happy faces", warriors, crosses and others. Of particular relevance are the textiles, whose complex motifs are strongly linked to those that appear on ceramic vessels. They used the simple tapestry technique, with a fine cotton warp, over which they crossed the dyed wool weft. The Recuay artistic representations, made in ceramic and stone, suggest that camelids, and especially the llama, played an important role in the different rituals of the religious life of this society. Many of the representations suggest that the center of these rituals must have been the fertility of the animals, a substantial aspect for a society that depended heavily on its livestock. The seller guarantees that he acquired this piece according to all national and international laws related to the ownership of cultural property.