Ñawpa Pacha

Journal of Andean Archaeology

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AN INVESTIGATION OF CUZCO-INCA CERAMICS;

CANONS OF FORM, PROPORTION, AND SIZE

George R. Miller

To cite this article: George R. Miller (1987) AN INVESTIGATION OF CUZCO-INCA CERAMICS;

CANONS OF FORM, PROPORTION, AND SIZE, Ñawpa Pacha, 25:1, 127-149, DOI: 10.1179/
naw.1987.25-27.1.002

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/naw.1987.25-27.1.002

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 AN INVESTIGATION OF CUZCO-INCA CERAMICS;
CANONS OF FORM, PROPORTION, AND SIZE
George R. Miller
It is an ironic twist of scholarship that among
the many ceramic styles of the prehistoric Andes,
perhaps the least understood is that of the culture
that we know the most about. Throughout the cen-
tury or more of Andean studies, both archaeologists
and collectors have tended to view Inca pottery as
aesthetically pleasing but intellectually unexciting.
Unlike many earlier Andean ceramic traditions, Inca
pottery contains no significant iconographic myster-
ies and, in general, has been viewed as bearing the
imperial stamp of Cuzco standardization. Hence,
most studies of Inca ceramics have concentrated on
pieces that are particularly fancy and/or are excep-
tional, in contrast to the finely executed but rather
predictable mainstream ones. This tendency has had
the unfortunate result of leaving normal Inca pot-
tery largely undocumented and only superficially
analyzed. As a result, the standard with which to com-
pare Inca pottery from the provinces has not been
adequately described.
This paper provides a description of the rules of
form, proportion, and size for five Cuzco- Inca ce-
ramic shape categories. The original research was con-
ducted jointly with Catherine J. Julien during the
summer of 1972 in the archaeology museum of the
Universidad Nacional del Cuzco. The Cuzco museum
houses the largest existing collection of Inca ceram-
ics and, most importantly, the ceramics recovered in
the excavation of Sacsahuaman in 1934 under the
direction of Luis A. Valcircel. The importance of the
Sacsahuaman materials lies in the fact that they origi-
nate from the only controlled excavation of a large
number of ceramics from Cuzco, the Inca capital.
Because of the division of labor of the original
1972 research project, this paper focuses on only
five of the fourteen Inca shape categories defined
by and described in detail by Julien (2004). The
shape categories described here are 1a, 1b, 2, 4, and
10 (see Julien, 2004, pp. 7-10). The remaining Inca
shape categories are described by Catherine Julien
(2004, pp. 8-11).
SHAPE lA
The most commonly occurring and character-
istic Inca ceramic form is a bottle-shaped vessel with
an ovaloid body, a conical base, and a long neck with
a flaring rim. Because of its vague resemblance to the
small Greek Protocorinthian scent jar called aryballos
(Cook, 1960, p. 44) and Hiram Bingham's misguided
desire for American archaeologists to make use of
terms already adopted and understood by students
of classical archaeology, this Inca shape's first major
appearance in the archaeological literature was with
the label "aryballus" (Bingham, 1915). Since that
time, this most characteristic of Inca vessels has been
called by various researchers "aryballus" (Bingham,
1930; Kendall, 1973, p. 176; Lunt, 1988), "aryballo"
(Lumbreras, 1974, p. 234), "aryballoi" (Morris and
Thompson, 1985, p. 76; Hyslop, 1990, p. 295), and
in Peru is commonly referred to as "adbalo" (Valcarcel,
1934a; 1934b; 1935; Fernandez Baca, 1973, p. 21;
Kauffmann Doig, 1973, p. 560); several Inca schol-
ars Qulien, 1983; Menzel, 1976; Rowe, 1944) have
managed entirely to avoid a specific label for this shape
category. Despite Rowe's suggestion that the term be
abandoned (1944, p. 47), however, and Morris and
Thompson's later echo that "the use of the term
'aryballoid' for these vessels is inappropriate" (1985,
p. 76), Bingham's Greek misnomer seems to have been
engraved indelibly in the archaeological lexicon, es-
pecially in Peru, where the hispanicized term,
"adbalo," seems to have gained universal acceptance.
Following Julien (2004, p. 7), however, I shall use
the term Cuzco bottle for this shape.
The following description of the Cuzco bottle
is based on examination of 69 specimens in the Cuzco
128 Nawpa Pacha 25-27

Graph 1. Size Distribution of Shape 1a Vessels in the 1972 Sample

15

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10
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eD
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0-
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8 11 14 17 20 23 26 29 32 35 38 41 44 47 50 53 56 59 62 65 68 71 74 77 80 83 86 89 92 95 em

Height

museum, 57 of which were complete and 12 of which Diagram 1

exhibited some damage, usually around the rim and/
or neck. All Cuzco bottles possess two thick, strap
handles attached vertically to the lower body, opposed ° °
180°, and as a rule two earlike, pierced lugs pendent
from the undersurface of the rim lip directly above
the handles (figs. 1-6). The front of Shape la ve sels
classically exhibits a decorative field; the back nor-
mally does not. A conventionalized, animal-head
nubbin is found on the front surface of the upper
!
body near the juncture with the neck and positioned I
I
at 90° from the handles and lugs; its position effec- I
- I

tively delineates the center line of the front surface of ~: Q)l

the body. This nubbin usually bears an incised, styl- -'>.=1 I

"'0 I

ized face which sometimes resembles a frog and some- COl

01

I
times a mammal.

Size Categories O :
: Body width
~--------------:-------------->
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D
I
I

Although Shape 1a is usually characterized in I

I
l'
the literature as a large ehieha storage container, the +
_30· \
Cuzco bottles in the sample were found to range in
height from as small as 7.5 em. to as large as 97.0
em., with two naturally occurring size clusters, which
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 129

seem to represent two distinct functional/size sub-
categories (graph 1). The Cuzco sample possesses only
two exceptions to the rule of Shape la bimodality: a
single intermediate-size specimen some 62 cm. in
height (graph 1) and a 3.2 cm. miniature not treated
in this study Oulien, 2004, fig. 66).
The 18 large bottles examined all fall within the
range of80-97 cm. in height. None of these 18 Shape
la vessels were found in the Sacsahuaman tombs;
instead they were recovered from other contexts in
the Cuzco area. These vessels most probably repre-
sent standard storage bottles.
The small Cuzco bottles (n = 39) range between
7.5 and 37 cm. in height with the majority falling be-
tween 15 and 22 cm. Given the difference of over 400
percent in height between the smallest vessel (7.5 cm.)
and the largest (37 cm.) within the small subcategory,
it is doubtful that all specimens that I have included in
it were viewed identically by either the Inca potter or
consumer. Perhaps a further subdivision of the small
Cuzco bottles could be made. There exists no clear
break in the total Cuzco sample, however, to justify
such a division. The only evidence that relates to this
problem is the fact that the twelve Shape 1a vessels
found in the Sacsahuaman tombs range in height from
7.5 to 22.5 cm., with a mean of 14.5 (s.d. = 4.65).
This fact suggests that Cuzco bottles of this size may
have been viewed as appropriate for burial offerings,
whereas small Cuzco bottles measuring between 23
and 37 cm. in height may have had some different
function. No other differences in shape or decoration
were detected between members of the smallest group
and their slightly larger cousins.
mum body diameter to maximum body height. On
the one hand, large Cuzco bottles tend to have bod-
ies almost as tall as they are wide (e.g., figs. 3-5);
their body-height/body-width ratios ranging from 0.9
to 1.03, with a mean of 0.95. Small Shape la vessels,
on the other hand, tend to have squatter bodies with
ratios ranging from 0.72 to 0.95, with a mean of 0.81.
Likewise, small Cuzco bottles generally possess a more
dome-shaped body contour (see fig. 6), which is ac-
centuated by the larger size of their handles in pro-
portion to body size and the consequent lack of lower
body curve. In contrast, the contour of large Shape
1a bodies tends to be rounded toward both the neck
and the base.
Another measure of Shape 1a form is the ratio
of neck to body height. Large Cuzco bottles exhibit
an apparent canon of proportion calling for the neck
to be about one-third the total height of the vessel,
the body and base constituting the remaining two-
thirds (range = 0.307-0.342, mean = 0.325, s.d. =
0.013). Small Cuzco bottles do not differ greatly from
this rule, but several small specimens were found that
had quite squat necks and neck-height/total-height
ratios well below those of the large specimens (range
= 0.266-0.36, mean = 0.312, s.d. = 0.025).
The rule of Shape la proportion that has per-
haps the most value for the archaeologist excavating
in Inca refuse deposits concerns rim sherds as indica-
Graph 2. Bivariate Scatterplot of Shape la
Rim Diameter vs. Vessel Height
100
D ~·

90 D ....···

Shape and Proportion 80

.......................................
0

70
The Shape 1a body, defined as the area between E
.2- 60
the base of the neck and the base angle (diag. 1), is 1:
C'l
generally ovaloid in form. The body meets the base 'Qi
50 ..........................•.
I
(ij
at a rather sharp angle which is normally about 30° ;2 40 ..··0
from the horizontal. The maximum diameter of the
30
Cuzco bottle is always found at the level of the cen-
D~""~
20
ter of the handles and the minimum body diameter ..0
at the point where the body joins the neck. The ge- 10
•......•••......<:b y = 7.7526 •.' + 2.7617x R' = 0.993
ometry of the body, although always falling within o
the ovoid description, was found in the Cuzco col- o 10 20 30 40

lection to vary slightly in the proportion of maxi- Rim Diameter (em)

130 Nawpa Pacha 25-27
tors of total vessel size. The mouth diameter of a
Cuzco bottle is highly predictive of the total height
and, hence, the volume of the vessel (see graph 2).
The rims of Cuzco bottles conform to a general rule
of thumb of being about 35 percent as wide as the
vessel is tall. In the Cuzco collection this relationship
holds for both large and small vessels. In collections
from Inca sites far from Cuzco, however, this rule
may not apply. For instance, an analysis of sherds
from Pachacamac suggests that the Shape 1a vessels
used at this provincial Inca site conformed to differ-
ent rules of proportion, which called for squatter,
narrow necks and taller bodies (Miller, ms., p. 5).
The placement of handles on Shape 1a vessels is
another feature that conforms to strict rules of pro-
portion and separates the large from the small varie-
ties. On the large Cuzco bottles the distance between
the base angle and the middle of the handles is ap-
proximately three-tenths to one-third of the distance
between the base angle and the shoulder. Handles on
small Cuzco bottles are placed somewhat lower.
Size and Surface Decoration
The painted surface decoration of Cuzco bot-
tles and all other Inca vessel categories is described in
detail by Catherine Julien (2004, pp. 12-14). A few
observations dealing directly with the relationships
of vessel size and surface decoration, however, are
warranted in this paper.
Horizontal panel designs
The great majority of Cuzco Shape 1a vessels,
in both the small and large categories, exhibits sur-
face decoration in the form of complex geometric
patterns. The simplest of the geometric compositions
found on Cuzco bottles is the one in which a series
of horizontally arranged design elements on the front
of the body are framed by a horizontal panel. There
appears to have been a great degree of latitude with
regard to the particular design elements used in this
pattern, along with the color combination, and the
proportion and position of the frame on the front of
the body. Only the horizontal extension of the panel
from right handle to left handle is constant on all speci-
mens of this design category in the Cuzco sample.
The most common design motif found in the
horizontal panel design category, and the only one
found on large Cuzco bottles of this category, is the
concentric diamond design. It is executed over an
unslipped surface on two large Cuzco bottles and over
a purple slip on two others. There is complete vari-
ability with regard to the size, position, and propor-
tions of the panel, but in three of the four specimens
the frame consists of two white bands separated by
black. The number, size, and proportion of the indi-
vidual diamonds, as well as the number of concen-
tric diamond elements, is also variable; but in three
out of four cases the diamonds are executed with al-
ternating white and black lines. The remaining body
surface and neck surface of these four large vessels
exhibit either purple slip or are left unpigmented. No
special treatment is given to the handles or the neck.
The eight small Cuzco bottles in the horizontal
panel design category depart rather markedly from
the pattern presented by their larger counterparts. In
all except one, the necks of small Cuzco bottles with
horizontal panels are set off from the unpigmented
bodies by the application of a purple or white slip,
with a band of the opposite color located just below
the line marking the base of the neck. All have panels
applied over unpigmented bodies, but three have a
dark background slip (purple or black) within the
panel frame. Those that have unpigmented bodies,
as well as those that have unpigmented ground within
the panel, tend to have purple frames bordered by
black lines. The design motives that fill the panel are
variable: black, or black-and-purple pendent ferns
Oulien, 2004, fig. 37); white-and-black concentric
diamonds; black-and-white tab designs; and black-
and-white zigzags.
Mode A designs
The most common Shape 1a design pattern in
the Cuzco collection was called Type A by Rowe
(1944, p. 47), and Mode A by Julien (2004, p. 12).
Fundamental to this design mode are vertically ori-
ented fern panels that flank a central panel of solid
purple decorated with bands of alternating bars and
Xs (figs. 1-2). The center panel of large Cuzco bottles
is always flanked on either side by two fern panels
separated from one another by a purple band. Small
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics
Cuzco bottles differ from this basic format in some-
times having only one vertical panel on each side of
the center section.
Small Shape 1a vessels decorated in Mode A con-
form generally to the composition plan of their large
counterparts but demonstrate a greater degree oflati-
tude in detail. Although the center section is always
present, it is often flanked on each side by just one
fern panel instead of two. If the center section is
flanked by single fern panels, the width of the center
section is usually augmented by the addition of di-
agonal stripes or other band elements. This addition
has the effect of approximately equalizing the width
of all three sections. One fern panel on either side is
the usual number on small Cuzco bottles, but two
may occur, especially on finely painted pieces at the
large end of the small Shape 1a size spectrum.
Mode B designs
The second most common design mode found
on Shape la vessels in the Cuzco collection is the
Type B pattern of Rowe (1944, p. 47), called Mode
B by Julien (2004, p. 13). The standard Mode B de-
sign format is composed of three major, vertical sec-
tions of approximately equal widths (fig. 3). The cen-
ter section consists of a central panel flanked by a
purple-on-white vertical lattice band, a black band,
and another purple-on-white lattice band. The cen-
tral panel of the center section always features a se-
ries of vertically arranged concentric diamonds ex-
ecuted in black over white. The side panels are equally
standardized and are normally composed of horizon-
tal rows of black, pendent triangles bordered above
and below by thin black lines.
Small Mode B Cuzco bottles are much less fre-
quent in the Cuzco collection than their Mode A
counterparts, and those that do exist seem to be sty-
listically aberrant. Only one small Shape 1a vessel
decorated in Mode B in the sample could be classed
as normal (cat. no. 1/65; Valcarcel, 1934a, p. 35 fig.
65). All others exhibit a number of design substitu-
tions or additions: the substitution of a filled variant
of the bars-and-Xs design in the lateral band, the sub-
stitution of fine black crosshatching for pendent tri-
angles, and/or the addition of white dots in between
pendent triangles. Specimen no. 1/268 from Tomb
131
F at Sacsahuaman possesses a basically Mode B for-
mat, but it is executed over a nonstandard white slip,
has black-and-white checkerboard diamonds on a
purple-and-white checkerboard ground, one purple
flanking band, alternating double rows of purple-and-
black triangles, and a purple neck Oulien, 2004, fig.
38). This is certainly the most bizarre and garish of
the small, Mode B Cuzco bottles, but it nevertheless
represents the general tendency for the smaller ves-
sels to deviate from the standard canons found in the
larger Mode B Cuzco bottles.
Exceptional designs
The final Shape 1a design category I shall dis-
cuss is composed of unique designs which do not
conform to any other standard category. With the
exception of one large specimen, all of these special
pieces are in the small size class. The designs found
on these small vessels are both original and eclectic,
drawing elements randomly from other groups of
vessels.The only tendency that could be noted among
these exceptional Cuzco bottles is one of continued
reliance on geometric elements and their usual ar-
rangement in horizontal or vertical panels and bands.
Geographical Variations
Twelvesmall Shape 1a vesselswere found in eight
of the fifteen tombs excavated by the Valcarcel project
at the fortress of Sacsahuaman above Cuzco. This
number represents fifteen percent of the total ceram-
ics found in those tombs. At Machu Picchu, Bingham
reports that an impressive 28 percent of the total ce-
ramic assemblage was composed of Shape 1a vessels
(Bingham, 1930, p. 127). Many of these specimens
must have been derived from city refuse, however, for
Eaton (1916) mentions only ten aryballos in his de-
scription of the 107 tombs excavated at Machu Picchu.
SHAPE IB
An Inca ceramic category that holds several shape
features in common with Shape la but appears to
have served an entirely different function is the one
designated here as Shape 1b Oulien, 2004, p. 8, fig.
132 Nawpa Pacha 25-27
14). These vessels are rare (only five in the Cuzco
sample), and exhibit highly decorated surfaces. They
range in height from 17.8 to 34.0 cm.
The features that Shape 1b vessels share with
Shape 1a are:
1. a similar bottle shape with wide body and narrow
neck;
2. low, vertically oriented strap handles;
3. an animal-face nubbin on the upper front sur-
face, and;
4. some decorative patterns.
The flat-based bottles depart from the Cuzco
bottle shape, however, in having extremely long, nar-
row necks in relation to the body (fig. 7). Whereas
Cuzco bottle necks are normally about one-third of
the total vessel height, all the flat-based bottle necks
in the Cuzco sample are at least one-half the total
height and more commonly about two-thirds of the
total height of the vessel. In addition, the character-
istic Shape 1a flaring rim may be minimized or even
absent in Shape 1b vessels.
The Shape 1b body, although possessing the
Cuzco bottle's nubbin and low handles, is more simi-
lar in form to some Shape 1c specimens than to Shape
1a. The body always has a flat bottom and an ovoid
or spheroid profile reminiscent of a bread loaf Shape
1b bodies tend to be about 75 percent as tall as they
are wide (body-height/body-width ratios range from
0.63 to 0.89) and to have the point of maximum
diameter at the level of the lower handle root.
SHAPE 2
Shape 2 vessels (figs. 8-13) share a number of
design features with both Shape 1a and Shape 1band,
hence, could be considered to belong to the same
shape family. Like Shape la vessels, the Shape 2 form
exhibits a pointed, conical base and, like both Shape
1a and Shape 1b, it possesses low, vertical strap
handles; an animal-face nubbin; and two earlike,
pierced lugs pendent from the undersurface of the
rim lip directly above the handles. In contrast to the
Shape 1 bottles, however, the Shape 2 Cuzco jars are
characterized by relatively straight-walled, deep bod-
ies; a minimal neck; and a very wide mouth.
The 17 Cuzco jars in the Cuzco collection range
in height from 5.6 to 94.0 cm. and, like Cuzco bottles,
can be easily separated into large and small size catego-
ries, with only two examples intermediate in size. Small
Shape 2 vessels range from 5.6 to 14.5 cm. in height
and large ones from 60.2 to 94.0 cm. (graph 3).
Shape Varieties
Three subcategories of shape may be defined
from the Cuzco sample of Shape 2 vessels. Shape 2a
vessels (figs. 8-9) are characterized by having bodies
approximately as wide as they are tall (maximum-
diameter/total-height ratio = ca. 1.0), with fairly
straight walls that curve slightly toward the base angle
and rim. A true neck does not exist on this variety,
but the body is slightly constricted a short distance
(about one-sixth of the total height) from the rim.
The rim diameter of Shape 2a jars is normally equiva-
lent to the body diameter. Handles are indistinguish-
able from those of Shape 1a vessels with regard to
relative size, shape, and position. Likewise, an animal-
face nubbin and two pierced lugs are found in the
usual positions.
Shape 2b vessels differ from Shape 1a jars only
in being somewhat taller and narrower (figs. 10-12).
This subcategory has a maximum-diameter/total-
heigh t ratio of 0.8 instead of the 1.0 ratio of Shape 2a.
Shape 2c jars occur only in small sizes and are
characterized by a more sharply demarcated neck and
a rim that is somewhat narrower than the maximum
body diameter (fig. 13; Julien, 2004, fig. 60). It should
be noted that there exists a continuum of variation
between Shapes 2a and 2c in the small vessel cat-
egory, and assignment of a vessel to one or the other
can be somewhat arbitrary.
Shape and Surface Decoration
The decoration of Shape 2 vessels generally re-
sembles Shape 1a body decoration except in the total
absence of Mode B decoration on the Shape 2 jars in
the Cuzco sample. The three large Shape 2a examples
from Cuzco (cat. nos. 2358, 3183, and 1/ 124) are
decorated in a traditional Mode A pattern. The basic
format is indistinguishable from that found on Cuzco
bottles. No. 3183, however, deviates from the normal
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 133

Graph 3. Size Distribution of Shape 2 Vessels in the 1972 Sample

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5 8 1114172023262932353841444750535659626568717477808386899295 em

Height

Shape 1a pattern by the use of white slip under the
band ofbars-and-Xs and in the fern stem. This color
patt rn i in a ord with th white lip of th con-
stricted area below the rim. This white neck is cov-
ered with horizontal rows of black flies on no. 2358
(fig. 9). Small Shape 2a vesselsare either unpigmented
or decorated in Mode A.
The 1972 sample contained only two Shape 2b
vessels (cat. nos. 2357 and 3182) both of which are
decorated in the horizontal panel fashion with a row
of concentric black-and-white diamonds. Both speci-
mens are decorated over an unpigmented surface and
both have slip-painted necks; no. 3182 has a tradi-
tional white neck, while no. 2357 has a black one.
Two further Shape 2b vessels were recently pho-
tographed in the Cuzco museum. Cat. no. 1423 (fig.
11), is most similar to no. 3182, but fig. 12 (cat. no.
M/13) is quite different, although it does have the
usual horizontal panel design and white neck. In ad-
dition, however, there are two white rectangles above
the panel on either side of the central nubbin, each
of which contains a viscacha-like animal which faces
away from the center; the decoration is on a pig-
mented ground. Moreover, on this specimen the base
of the neck is more like that of the Shape 2c vessels in
being rather sharply demarcated.
The Shape 2c vessels in the Cuzco sample are
decorated in four compositions: overall purple slip,
purpl and whit lip appli d as on Cuz 0 bottl s, a
horizontal panel filled with white and black tabs, and
a unique geometric design.
Geographical Variations
Only one Shape 2 vessel was found with burial
associations at Sacsahuaman; none was reported from
Ollantaytambo. These facts, coupled with the total
absence of Shape 2 vessels from Bingham's ceramic
inventory at Machu Picchu, suggest that the small
version of this ceramic category was extremely rare
and its use may have been largely limited to Cuzco.
SHAPE 4
This shape category is characterized by deep-
bodied, wide-mouthed, flaring-rim jars with a recurved
contour and high, vertical handles. Shape 4 jars vary
in height from 7.9 to 55.2 em. and are easily sorted
into two major size categories (graph 4): large, highly
decorated jars clustering around heights of35-40 em.;
and small, simply decorated jars ranging in height
134 Nawpa Pacha 25-27

Graph 4. Size Distribution of Shape 4 Vessels in the 1972 Sample

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8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56 em

Height

from 8 to 15 em. A single Shape 4 jar is the only
exception in the sample to this bimodality.
With regard to form, the large jars all seem to
conform to the same rules of proportion, whereas
the small jars differ from them in numerous features
and vary greatly among themselves. In general, the
features that unite the waisted jars in a single cat-
egory are much less numerous than the features that
exhibit significant variation. Given this variability and
the rather small sample of Shape 4 vesselsin the Cuzco
collection (n= 13), the design rule generalizations that
follow must be considered tentative.
All Shape 4 jars possess two vertical, strap
handles, 180 opposed, that bridge the waist of the
0
nonexistent. For the sake of convenience and clarity
I refer to the area of minimum diameter as the waist
rather than the neck, and designate as the inflection
point that point on the wall contour where the sig-
moid curve reverses direction so that the body be-
comes the waist.
The height of the waist varies considerably in
the Cuzco sample of Shape 4 jars. The position of
the inflection point in relation to the height, as mea-
sured by the IH/TH ratios (diag. 2), was found to be
Diagram 2. Based on eat no. 2301,
height = 34.7 effi.
r - ------

BLmJ:d.i<!l1J.elellR.Pl_ - - - - - -~
jar (area of minimum diameter), attached at the top
just under the rim and at the bottom on the upper -----. I
I
I
body. The length of these handles and their degree of \
I
arc depend on the size of the jar and its waist propor- I
I

tions (figs. 14-16). Handles vary from long, broad

straps (cat. no. 2302) on the large jars to small loops
I
I
I

,
I
Minimum Diameter
------. I
I
Inflection
~:-,
I
on some of the small, high-waisted jars (fig. 16). A - -Point ~-
I
Shape 4 jar (fig. 14), collected by Max Uhle in Cuzco £\
0>
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0Q3 I
in 1905, also conforms perfectly to this rule of pro- I I

co -I
I,
portion. In general the lower root of the handle origi- ~ :::::..,

nates at, or just below, the inflection point of the ~:~:

profile of all Shape 4 jars (diag. 2). C,
02,
t5'
The Shape 4 wall contour is a smooth, sigmoid Q)I
;;::,
.E,,
curve completely without corner points. This feature I
I
_____t _ _ t_J __
makes the distinction between body and neck almost
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics
fairly consistent on four large Shape 4 jars, each of
which exhibits at this point a painted horizontal band
(here called an inflection band). The inflection points
of these four jars fall just above the halfway point of
total height (they have IH/TH ratios ranging from
0.522 to 0.594), whereas the other two large waisted
jars in the Cuzco collection, and the majority of small
Shape 4 jars possess inflection points higher on the
body, with IH/ TH ratios between 0.633 and 0.82.
The summary impression of waisted jars in the
Cuzco collection is that large jars with painted in-
flection bands are graceful and symmetrical. In con-
trast, the higher waists of small jars and of large jars
without the painted inflection band detract from their
symmetry.
The only proportion that was found to be fairly
consistent throughout the Shape 4 jar category is the
ratio of rim-diameter to maximum-diameter (RD/
MD). For the thirteen Shape 4 vessels in the Cuzco
collection, this ratio ranges from 0.84 to 1.09, but
closely hugs the 1.0 value suggesting a canon of pro-
portion that prescribed an approximate equivalence
of rim and body diameters.
In addition to the rather consistent RD/MD
proportion, most Shape 4 jars are roughly two-thirds
to three-quarters as wide as they are tall. This gener-
alization is supported by MD/TH ratios that range
from 0.655 to 0.74, averaging 0.686 (diag. 2).
Shape Varieties
All proportions other than those just noted dem-
onstrate a high degree of variability even among the
four most consistent inflection-band jars. These varia-
tions occur in the degree of curve between body and
waist, the smoothness or angularity of all curves, the
height at which the maximum body diameter is
found, the flatness or roundness of the base, and the
aforementioned height of the inflection point/waist
area. Based on these features, the Shape 4 jars from
the Cuzco museum can be separated into three sub-
categories of shape with a substantial degree of over-
lap among the subcategories.
Shape 4a jars are represented by five large speci-
mens with inflection bands and a small jar from
Sacsahuaman. Two other large jars (cat. no. 3124 and
an uncatalogued specimen) are also included in this
135
subcategory as somewhat high-waisted variants. Shape
4a jars are characterized by a gently curving profile,
maximum diameter about halfway up the body, long
vertical strap handles, and a rounded base angle; diag.
2 is based on a Shape 4a vessel.
Shape 4b jars are represented by three specimens
from the Cuzco collection (see fig. 15). Jars of this
subcategory are characterized by a point of maximum
diameter low on the body; a body contour that is
more angular than that of Shape 4a vessels; and a
flat, or minimally curved, base. All examples are small,
between 7.9 and 11.1 em. in height.
The Shape 4c subcategory may, with a larger
sample, turn out to be simply a catchall for all forms
that do not conform to Shapes 4a or 4b. There is,
however, a tendency among the three examples of
this subcategory to have a fat body; a short waist;
and short, chunky handles (see fig. 16). All three
Shape 4c specimens are small, ranging in height be-
tween 12.9 and 15.8 em.
Surface Decoration
Of all the Cuzco shape categories discussed in
this paper, Shape 4a jars exhibit the highest degree of
standardization with regard to painted decoration.
With the exception of one small jar from Sacsahuaman,
Shape 4a jars are consistently decorated in a manner
similar to the Type B composition pattern seen on
Cuzco bottles. Five of these jars are decorated almost
identically and are the fanciest of the Shape 4 vessels.
I shall refer to these five specimens (nos. 2301,2302,
2303, 3123, and 15/1639) as classic Shape 4a jars.
In contrast to Shape la and 2 vessels decorated with
the Mode B pattern, the design field on Shape 4a jars
is bifacial, the front and back surfaces being essen-
tially identical. The entire surface, with the excep-
tion of the base and the area on the waist underneath
the handles, is slipped purple on 7 of the 8 Cuzco
Shape 4a vessels (the exception is a vessel on which
the unslipped area extends onto the body below the
handles). The two design fields of large 4a jars are
decorated with parallel, horizontal rows of black pen-
dent triangles that are executed on the purple slip
and separated by thin white lines. These rows of tri-
angles range from 8 to 15 mm. high and extend from
the lip to the base angle, being interrupted only by a
136 Nawpa Pacha 25-27
somewhat wider (1.2 em.) purple-on-white lattice
band at the inflection point on the five classic pieces.
Commonly the pendent triangles of the top row are
quite large (35-45 mm. wide). Delineating both the
anterior and posterior design fields on either side is a
vertical, purple-on-white lattice band, running from
the lip to the base angle. The Uhle specimen (fig. 14)
varies slightly from this pattern in having two verti-
cal lattice bands on either side of the design panel
instead of one.
The decoration of the classic Shape 4a handles
also departs from the Type B format of shapes 1a and
2 in the utilization of a double or multiple bar-and-
X design executed in black on purple. This design
normally appears vertically down the flat, exterior
surfaces of the handle. The design theme found on
the handles is often continued on the body just be-
low their lower roots by the use of multiple black Xs
arranged horizontally. None of the Cuzco 4a jars are
identical with regard to the details of handle decora-
tion but all use variations of the bars-and-Xs design.
There are two pieces in the Shape 4a subcate-
gory that require additional discussion. No. 3124 and
an uncatalogued specimen conform vaguely to the
aforementioned rules of shape and decoration but
differ quite noticeably in detail. Both are high-waisted
and have no painted inflection band; neither has the
classic purple-on-white lateral lattice band. Instead,
No. 3124 has vertical black-on-white stripes on the
lateral surfaces and the uncatalogued specimen has a
carelessly executed purple-on-white zigzag pattern in
the same location. Both have abnormally wide, white
separator bands and are painted carelessly. Judging
from the rigid standardization of design and tech-
nique exhibited by the classic 4a jars, and the num-
ber of departures from the norm seen in these two
jars, it is likely that they are either provincial imita-
tions or local variants.
The variety of decoration of both Shape 4b and
4c is as great as the number of pieces. These jars are
all small, and their surface decoration includes a Mode
A fern pattern, an unpigmented jar with purple
handles, and several others. The only conclusions that
can be drawn from these pieces are that, with the
exception of the Mode A specimen, the decoration is
much plainer than that of the larger Shape 4a jars,
that some simply decorated bodies are still accompa-
nied by handles with the bars-and-Xs design, and that
the beginning of the waist may be demarcated by a
band or color change.
Geographical Variations
There is only one Shape 4a vessel with specific
provenience from the Cuzco sample: No. 15/1659
excavated in the Pumac Chupan section of Cuzco.
Only two small jars (a 4b and a 4c) were recovered at
Sacsahuaman and neither is from a tomb. Likewise,
only two specimens were excavated at Ollantaytambo,
one of them in Tomb B Qulien, 2004, fig. 143).
In contrast to the small number of Shape 4 jars
in the Cuzco sample, Bingham reports 78 Shape 4
jars from Machu Picchu (4.7 percent of the total
sample). One-third of these were found in burial
caves, or one for every two burial caves (Bingham,
1930, p. 162). The high frequency of Shape 4 vessels
in Machu Picchu burials contrasts markedly with the
absence of such vessels in Sacsahuaman tombs and
suggests that they may have been used quite differ-
ently at this provincial site than at the Inca capital.
SHAPE 10
Shape 10 vessels are commonly referred to as
cooking pots, ollas, or pedestal pots. They are char-
acterized by a pedestal base, a wide-mouthed body, a
sharply angular rim, and a single horizontal loop
handle extending upward from the back of the body
at an approximately 45° angle. The normal width of
the handle strap is roughly one-half of the width of
the loop (distance between the right and left strap).
The pedestal base is consistently built with a hollow
core and has a diameter measuring approximately
two-thirds of the diameter of the body. Aside from
this rule of proportion there is great variation in the
shape and size of the pedestal. In the Cuzco collection,
Shape 10 vessels range in height from 6.8 to 18.3 em.
Shape Varieties
The Shape 10 pedestal pots in the Cuzco col-
lection were divided into three separate categories
according to body form. These categories, however,
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics
should be viewed as only tentative due to the signifi-
cant overlap between forms and to the small sample
size (n= 13).
Shape lOa bodies are fairly deep and present a
rather rounded ellipsoid contour with no sharp angles.
They normally possess a sharply angular rim, everted
to between 45° and 90°. The rim diameter of Shape
lOa vessels is approximately equivalent to two-thirds
of the maximum diameter of the pot (see fig. 17).
Shape lOb vessels tend to have shallower bodies
than those of Shape lOa; to have a more angular body
contour, possessing a sharp line of demarcation be-
tween the body and the pedestal; and to have an even
more everted rim than does Shape lOa (see fig. 18).
Shape 10c is represented by only one example
in the Cuzco collection (no. I/G/273) and it may be
unique. It has a rather dome-shaped body with its
maximum diameter near the body base angle and
slopes to a minimum diameter at the rim. Instead of
being everted, like those of other Shape 10 vessels,
the unique rim of this specimen is stepped (fig. 19;
also Julien, 2004, fig. 54).
Decoration
Shape 10 vessels are completely unslipped with
the exception of purple slip found on the angular
rim of several of them. Some pedestal pots are highly
burnished and others are not. The only consistent
decoration on Shape 10 pots is a small applique adorno
attached to the front of the body opposite the loop
handle. In the Cuzco sample these adornos consist
of two closely spaced mammiform protuberances,
each with a central, circular dent or horizontal inci-
sion, or an elongate element with slightly broadened
ends, applied in the form of a V or W (no.l/G/273).
There is no apparent correlation between the form of
the adorno and the body shape or any other feature.
Geographical Variations
Shape 10 vessels constitute 10 percent of the
ceramic sample from the Sacsahuaman burials. This
percentage is significant for vessels that are believed
to have had a cooking function. In this regard, how-
ever, none of the Shape 10 vessels from Sacsahuaman
appear to be fire blackened. In direct contrast,
137
Bingham claims that all the pedestal pots from Machu
Picchu were fire blackened (1930, p. 148). Shape 10
vessels represent some 21 percent of the total finds in
the Machu Picchu burial caves and about 10 percent
of the city refuse (Bingham, 1930, p. 152).
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
This study has provided a previously unavail-
able assessment of stylistic standardization and di-
versity among five separate Cuzco- Inca ceramic shape
categories. Among the many details of form, size, and
surface decoration reported here one significant con-
stellation of nested observations stands out. This set
of observations is as follows:
1. Of the 14 Cuzco- Inca shape categories re-
viewed in this study and that of Catherine
Julien (2004), three (shapes la, 2, and 4) are
salient in that they occur in two distinct size
classes with virtually no overlap between the
classes.
2. In general the canons of proportion and sur-
face decoration observed on the larger class
of Shape 1a, 2, and 4 vessels are restricted
and highly standardized. The well known
Mode A and Mode B design patterns are most
at home on these large vessels.
3. In contrast, the canons of proportion and es-
pecially surface decoration observed on the
small members of Shape 1a, 2, and 4 vessels
are much less consistent. Small Cuzco bottles,
for example, demonstrate a Inuch greater
number of basic design patterns than are seen
on large examples. Small Shape 2 vessels ex-
hibit unorthodox and unique designs,
whereas large specimens of that shape are con-
sistently decorated with either the standard
Mode A or the Horizontal Panel pattern.
From these observations, it would appear that
the Inca ceramic artist viewed the small ver-
sion of these three shapes as a more fitting me-
dium for experimentation than the large one.
4. The provenience information for these two
size classes is incomplete, but two contrasting
statements can be affirmed with certainty. A
138 Nawpa Pacha 25-27
large proportion of the small varieties of Shape
la, 2, and 4 vessels were discovered in tombs
(Sacsahuaman and Ollantaytambo). None of
the large specimens were found in tombs.
Based on the Cuzco sample it is probable that
the distinct size classes observed among Shape 1a, 2,
and 4 vessels and the different design rules applied to
them is an expression of the public versus personal
context in which they operated. DeBoer and Moore
(1983) have argued persuasively that design diversity
and experimentation in Shipibo-Conibo ceramics is
a function of the amount of public exposure enjoyed
by a particular vessel category; i.e., vessels that oper-
ate within the personal realm exhibit fewer design
elements whereas those that have high public expo-
sure exhibit a much greater diversity of design. Judg-
ing by the Cuzco collection, the exact reverse seems
to have been the implicit rule governing the oppos-
ing forces of Inca ceramic creativity and conformity;
i.e., small vessels that were probably the possessions
of private individuals and/or part of their burial fur-
niture were allowed a much greater degree of artistic
creativity than large vessels that functioned in the
public domain which had to conform to much more
rigid standards.
Ceremonial feasts and chicha distribution have
been noted frequently as expressions of power in
Andean polities, especially under the Inca. The func-
tions of the three large vessel categories in question is
uncertain, but it is highly probable that shapes 1a
and 2 were used in the process of brewing, storing,
and distributing chicha. Large Shape 4 vessels may
have functioned in a similar context. As such, the
highly standardized proportions and designs of these
vessels would have reinforced the imperial stamp of
Cuzco and the order ofTawantinsuyo.
3June 1991
Revised 25 June 1996
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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1915 Types ofMachu Picchu pottery. American Anthro-
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271. Lancaster.
1930 Machu Picchu; a citadel of the Incas. Report of
the explorations and excavations made in 1911,
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oirs of the National Geographic Society. Yale Uni-
versity Press, New Haven; Oxford University Press,
London.
Cook, Robert Manuel
1960 Greek painted pottery. Methuen's Handbooks of
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DeBoer, Warren Richard, and Moore, James A.
1983 The measurement and meaning of stylistic diversity.
Nawpa Pacha 20,1982, pp. 147-162. Berkeley.
Eaton, George Francis
1916 The collection of osteological material from Machu
Picchu. Memoirs of the Connecticut Academy of
Arts and Sciences, vol. V, May. New Haven.
Fernandez Baca, Jenaro
1973 Motivos de ornamentacion de la ceramica Inca-
Cuzco. Torno 1. Libreda Studium, Editores; Lima.
Hyslop, John
1990 Inka settlement planning. University of Texas Press,
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Julien, Catherine Jean
1983 Hatunqolla: A view of Inca rule from the Lake
Titicaca region. Publications in Anthropology, vol.
15. University of California Press, Berkeley.
2004 Las tumbas de Sacsahuaman yel estilo Cuzco- Inca.
Nawpa Pacha25-27, 1987-1989, pp. 1-125. Ber-
kele~ ' Sajsawaman redescubierto. (III). Revista del Museo
Kauffmann Doig, Federico
1973 Manual de la arqueologia peruana. Ediciones Peisa,
Lima.
Kendall, Ann
1973 Everyday life of the Incas. B.T. Batsford Ltd., Lon-
don; G.r Putnam's Sons, New York.
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Lumbreras, Luis Guillermo
1974 The peoples and cultures of ancient Peru. Trans-
lated by Betty J. Meggers. Smithsonian Institution
Press, Washington.
Lunt, Sara Wendy
1988 The manufacture of the Inca aryballus. In Recent
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Nicholas J. Saunders and Olivier de Montmollin,
part ii, pp. 489-511. B.A.R. In ternational Series
421 (ii). Oxford.
Menzel, Dorothy
1976 Pottery style and society in ancient Peru; art as a
mirror of history in the lea Valley, 1350-1570.
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Miller, George Robert
ms. An analysis of Pachacamac refuse pottery. Semi-
nar paper, Anthropology 235, Peruvian archaeol-
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California, Berkeley, 1973.
Morris, [Edward] Craig, and Thompson, Donald Enrique
1985 Huanuco Pampa; an Inca city and its hinterland.
Thames and Hudson, London.
Rowe, John Howland
1944 An introduction to the archaeology of Cuzco. Pa-
pers of the Peabody Museum of American Archae-
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XXVII, no. 2. Cambridge.
Valcarcel, Luis Eduardo
1934a Sajsawaman redescubierto. Revista del Museo
Nacional, tomo III, nos. 1-2, pp. 3-36. Lima.
1934b Los trabajos arqueologicos en el Departamento del
Cusco. II. Sajsawaman redescubierto. Revista del
Museo Nacional, tomo III, no. 3, pp. 211-233.
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140 Nawpa Paeha 25-27

Fig. 1. MUC 3178, mouth diameter 32.5 em. Fig. 2. MUC 3185, height ea. 77 em.
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 141

Fig. 3. MUC (no I), no measurement. Fig. 4. MUC 1858, mouth diameter 35 cm.
142 Nawpa Pacha 25-27

Fig. 5. MUC 3177, Herrera collection, 1949

 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 143

o
o Q
6 7

o o

o D

Fig. 6. UNC No. 1/62, Sacsahuaman, height 20.5 cm. Fig. 7. UNC No. 2307, height 39.09 cm. Fig. 8.
UNC No. 1/124, Sacsahuaman, height 62 cm.
144 Nawpa Pacha 25-27

10

Fig. 9 MUC 2358, mouth diameter 69.5 em. Fig. 10. UNC No. 3128, height 97 em., nubbin off-center as
drawn.
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 145

11

Fig. 11. MUC 1423, mouth diameter 62 cm.

146 Nawpa Paeha 25-27

12

o o

o o
13

Fig. 12. MUC M/31, mouth diameter 58.5 em. Fig. 13. UNC No. 1/109, Saesahuaman, Tomb H, height
10.2 em.
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 147

14

Fig. 14. Hearst Museum, 4-7995.9

148 Nawpa Paeha 25-27

15

16

Fig. 15. UNC No. 1/107a, Saesahuaman, height 7.9 em. Fig. 16. UNC No. 5/686, Ollantaytambo, height
15.8 em.
 Miller: Investigation of Cuzco- Inca Ceramics 149

17

.. .. - -. .. - .. .' ., ' .. .-

18

19

Fig. 17. UNC No. 1/403, Sacsahuaman, height 15.9 cm. Fig. 18. UNC No. 1/51, Sacsahuaman, height 6.8
cm. Fig. 19. UNC No. 1/G/273, Sacsahuaman, Tomb G, height 15.5 cm.