Handle Spout Vessel Depicting Anal Sex
100 BCE–500 CE
Medium
Ceramic and pigment
Dimensions
H.: 14.6 cm (5 3/4 in.)
Classification
earthenware
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
86208
Art Historical Context
This striking Handle Spout Vessel, crafted by artists of the ancient Moche culture of's northern coast (ca. 100 BCE–500 CE), exemplifies the bold naturalism of pre-Columbian ceramics. Made from earthenware with applied pigments, the small vessel—standing just 5 3/4 inches tall—features the signature stirrup-spout form, a Moche innovation that prevented spills and allowed secure handling. Its double-bridge handle and modeled figures capture intimate human activities with remarkable realism, including a depiction of anal sex between two figures. Moche potters were master ceramicists, firing ves...
About the Artist
Moche
The Moche artists flourished between approximately 100 and 800 CE along the northern coast of Peru, in valleys such as Moche, Chicama, and Virú, creating a profound body of work in ceramics, metalwork, and monumental architecture that defined their stratified society. Centered around sites like Huaca del Sol and Huaca de la Luna near modern Trujillo, these anonymous artisans operated in specialize...