pre-columbian art

Catfish pendant

The Denver Art Museum’s collection of Costa Rican art is encyclopedic, with extensive, aesthetically outstanding holdings of stone sculpture, jade, ceramics, and gold ornaments like the pendant seen here.

This pendant has been identified as a catfish because of the barbels beside its mouth. However, the presence of serpents with serrated bodies that emerge from the mouth suggest a being with special powers.

Asian Art