The Shape of the Divine: the Three-Dimensional Representation of Nasca Feminine Supernaturality

Abstract

The Nasca culture of Southern Peru left an impressive artistic heritage including many ceramic objects, among these figurines, small statues and bottles bearing the image of a woman with a plump, naked, white-painted body that is often decorated with black paintings, probably representing tattoos. By delving into the matter of supernaturality representations in Andean art in general and in Nasca art in particular, the article explores the feasibility that this recurrent image represents a feminine supernatural being. On that basis, as well as on different iconographical components, possible identifications of this image as moon goddess, sea and water goddess as well as fertility goddess are examined. The article suggests that the representations of this feminine image probably refer to a single divinity with multiple roles, where certain images emphasize one or other of these. Likewise, the color, materiality and the three-dimensionality of these pieces are explored as well as the way these components, together with the iconographical massage, contribute to the creation of meaning in Nasca art.

[Nasca culture, femininity, divinities, figurines, ceramic]