Jar in the Form of a Phallus
100 BCE–500 CE
Medium
Ceramic and pigment
Dimensions
H.: 22.1 cm (8 11/16 in.)
Classification
earthenware
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
9090
Art Historical Context
This striking ceramic jar, shaped like a phallus,ails from the Moche culture of ancient Peru, thriving between 100 BCE and 500 CE along the northern coast. The Moche were renowned master potters, producing some of the finest pre-Columbian ceramics in the Americas. Their vessels often featured naturalistic forms and bold imagery drawn from daily life, mythology, and ritual practices, with phallic motifs symbolizing fertility, regeneration, and the life-giving forces of nature. Standing at 22.1 cm tall, this earthenware piece exemplifies their skill in capturing human anatomy with remarkable rea...
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...