Figural Pendant
Artist
Unknown
Datecirca 750–1550
MediumGilded metal and cast gold
Dimensions4 5/8 x 5 3/8 in. (11.7 x 13.7 cm)
ClassificationsMetal
Credit LineGift of Dr. Clifton F. Mountain and Mrs. Marilyn T. Mountain
Object number96.4.78
On View
Not on viewThis pendant was worn as an emblem of prestige and power. It depicts an eagle-masked male figure holding a double-headed serpent rope, which arches upward through the eagle's beak. Images such as these are thought to depict various stages of the transformation of a shaman, a religious practitioner with magical powers.Published ReferencesRebecca Martin Nagy, "New Galleries for the African, Ancient American, and Oceanic Collections," North Carolina Museum of Art Preview and Calendar of Events (January/February 2000), illus. (b-w) 7.
Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "Art for the People: Recent Museum Acquisitions," September 14, 1997-January 4, 1998. (Closing date extended to January 25, 1998)
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