[Vessel] Nazca culture developed along the arid coast and valleys of southern Peru between the 2nd and 7th centuries A.D. The Nazca excelled in making polychrome ceramic vessels.

This vessel -- with two spouts and a handle between them resembling a bridge -- probably served an important ceremonial function. The falcon depicted on it is the most important figure in Nazca mythology, perhaps because it can escape the earth and soar close to the mountaintops.

Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian, purchased in 1950
Bridge-Handle Vessel, Nazca peoples, Peru, A.D. 200-600, polychrome ceramic

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