A rare set of Jamacoaque personal nose ornaments. These items are unique and seldom exhibited. Made of solid copper and are very heavy. Because of their weight, it’s hard to imagine how one would sustain it in place. Wonderful patina on all three. The largest shows evidence of original gold plating. Manabi region, Ecuador. 500 BC - 500AD. Condition is Choice.

Sizes are: 25mm wide, 22mm tall, 20mm thick, 68.8g; 22mm wide, 21mm tall, 15mm thick, 33.5g; 18mm wide, 15mm tall, 8mm thick, 10g.

Comes mounted in modern shadowbox display. Manabi region, Ecuador. 500 BC - 500 AD.

The Jama civilization attained mastery in the art of metallurgy, with a thorough knowledge of alloy production, in particular a well-developed alloy of copper and arsenic.  They were also well-versed in the process of gold-plating.  

The method employed for founding metal was to place the metal in a ceramic crucible and heat it using wood charcoal as fuel. Air was blown into the kiln with a bamboo tube, until the temperature reached 1100ºC, sufficient to melt gold or copper.