Nazca Bowl with Diamond Motif

Five diamonds hold hands around the rim of a dark bowl.

This bowl with diamond motif is Nazca, from Peru, and dates to 100 BCE to 800 CE. It is painted pottery. The Nazca of the south coast of Peru are generally known for polychrome pottery, usually slip painted and burnished before firing. The sides flare outward from a narrow base. A band of cream colored diamonds, each filled with a cross hatched grid, circles the dark body. A smooth red interior and a red rim frame the pattern. It is 2 inches high and 5.5 in diameter.

Geometry, kept in the cupboard for some time.