Lee Ann Torrans Looks at Pre-Colombian Art at the Dallas Museum of Art

DFW Tours! Dallas Art and Fort Worth Art

The Dallas Museum of Art and the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth contain recognized collections of Precolumbian Art.

The pictures are not as crisp as I would like. Check back — will update soon.

At the Dallas Museum of Art the extensive collection includes the two bird-form finials from Colombia, Sudi Region c. A.D. 500 to 1500. These were a gift from the Nora an John Wise Collection.

PreColombian Crown - Dallas Museum of Art

Crown with deity figures

This remarkable work in sheet gold portrays three images of the Staff God, the primary Chavín deity. The iconography of the crown links it to the ancient ceremonial center of Chavín de Huántar, where a famous and influential image of this deity was engraved on a granite slab.

Symbols of powerful predators—jaguar, harpy eagle, cayman, and serpent—define the image of the Staff God. The large head features a snarling mouth with feline fangs. Serpent heads emerge from the figure’s head and waist. Heads in profile accent elbows and legs. Talons mark fingers and toes. Rows of teeth with pointed incisors form a vertical band on the torso and the upright staff in each hand.

The sculptural clarity of the forms and the dramatic use of negative space distinguish the crown among the known examples of Chavín goldwork.