Effigy bottle

Along most of the Pacific Coast of Peru, fertile river valleys carrying runoff from the Andes pierce a vast desert. Archaeologists refer to the civilizations that arose in this region as North Coast or South Coast, with the present-day capital of Lima marking the boundary. The Nasca, one of the leading civilizations of the South Coast, are today most famous for their monumental lines—ritual pathways meant to be traversed by foot rather than seen from the air. Nasca ceramics are technologically sophisticated, showing the use of over twelve different colors for slip decoration. Images, outlined in black, include highly naturalistic animals as well as mythological creatures that fly through the air and sport feline whiskers.