Gold 005

Description

Breastplates: A Flash of Gold

Part of the power and allure of the pre Columbian gold pieces were their very purposeful use of reflecting surfaces to catch and reflect the glare of the sun, such as this sheet-gold breastplate worn on one’s chest. This spectacular pair of repoussé pieces, is mounted in a black ‘shadowbox’ perfectly displayed for unique wall art.

Made using the same ancient technique that the original, Pre Columbian goldsmiths employed – lost wax casting – this fine cast gold breastplate was worn by personages of rank when these societies were flourishing mostly in the southern Pacific coast region of present-day Costa Rica. Such symbols of inherited rank and position in these societies were the very objects that inspired the first European explorers, when they saw these lavishly gold-bedecked inhabitants of today’s Costa Rica, to name this Central American territory: Costa Rica (the rich coast).

Item Details:

• Size: 11″ x 17″ (28 x 43cm)
• 900 CE – 1500’s