GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The name Paracas (para-ako) means “sand falling like rain” in the indigenous Quechua language, highlighting the harsh desert environment. Despite the stark conditions, the Paracas culture developed a vibrant polychrome visual tradition in their textiles, ceramics, and other visual arts. Paracas ceramicists used a technique of combining mineral paints with plant resins to create a palette of yellow, green, red, and white pigments, which could be applied to the vessel surface after firing. This technique produced a waxy texture of bright colors set against a dark gray or black surface.
During the Early Horizon Period (900-200 BCE), feline imagery becomes common in Paracas arts. The concentric circle designs across the body, bands over the tail, and distinct markings of the face may refer to the coastal ocelot (Leopardis pardalis) or tropical forest jaguar (Panthera onca).
Excerpt from
Label text, A. H. Meadows Galleries.
NOTES
- Paracas, Early Horizon, 500–100 B.C.E. (noted on TMS, website), updated by KJones on TMS, 11/13/13 and 06/01/15.
- General Description drawn from: DMA Label Copy (1977.4), n.d.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
n.d.: Edward L. Shaw, Buenos Aires, Argentina [1], [2]
Until 1977: Mrs. Eugene D. McDermott, Dallas [3]
From 1977: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, gift of the above [2], [4]
[1] The main source for this provenance is existing information in TMS. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[2] The main source for this provenance is Acquisition Record (dated April 12, 1977, copy in Dallas Museum of Art Collections Records Object Files). Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[3] The main source for this provenance is letter from John Lunsford, Curator at Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, to Mr. Robert Sonin, Art Conservation and Consultation (appraiser), New Jersey (dated October 11, 1977, copy in Dallas Museum of Art Collections Records Object Files). The letter states that the piece was broken during its ownership by Mrs. McDermott, and was restored by Dr. Young in Boston. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[4] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
- 253365347: UMO. [Caption] Ocelot (Leopardis pardalis). Source: Tom Smylie - US Fish & Wildlife Service Image Archive, Wikimedia Commons, accessed: April 27, 2015, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Leopardus_pardalis#/media/File:Ocelot.jpg.
- 253365049: UMO. [Caption] Jaguar (Panthera onca). Source: Lea Maimone (own work), Wikimedia Commons, accessed: April 27, 2015, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Panthera_onca#/media/File:Panthera_onca.jpg.
WEB RESOURCES
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1977.4
Category
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General Description
The name Paracas (para-ako) means “sand falling like rain” in the indigenous Quechua language, highlighting the harsh desert environment. Despite the stark conditions, the Paracas culture developed a vibrant polychrome visual tradition in their textiles, ceramics, and other visual arts. Paracas ceramicists used a technique of combining mineral paints with plant resins to create a palette of yellow, green, red, and white pigments, which could be applied to the vessel surface after firing. This technique produced a waxy texture of bright colors set against a dark gray or black surface.
During the Early Horizon Period (900-200 BCE), feline imagery becomes common in Paracas arts. The concentric circle designs across the body, bands over the tail, and distinct markings of the face may refer to the coastal ocelot (Leopardis pardalis) or tropical forest jaguar (Panthera onca).
Excerpt from
Label text, A. H. Meadows Galleries.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
- Paracas, Early Horizon, 500–100 B.C.E. (noted on TMS, website), updated by KJones on TMS, 11/13/13 and 06/01/15.
- General Description drawn from: DMA Label Copy (1977.4), n.d.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
n.d.: Edward L. Shaw, Buenos Aires, Argentina [1], [2]
Until 1977: Mrs. Eugene D. McDermott, Dallas [3]
From 1977: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, gift of the above [2], [4]
[1] The main source for this provenance is existing information in TMS. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[2] The main source for this provenance is Acquisition Record (dated April 12, 1977, copy in Dallas Museum of Art Collections Records Object Files). Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[3] The main source for this provenance is letter from John Lunsford, Curator at Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, to Mr. Robert Sonin, Art Conservation and Consultation (appraiser), New Jersey (dated October 11, 1977, copy in Dallas Museum of Art Collections Records Object Files). The letter states that the piece was broken during its ownership by Mrs. McDermott, and was restored by Dr. Young in Boston. Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[4] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
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Objects
number
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1977.4
source file
object_notes_3_c-0110.xml.nores