Plate Physical Object


Accession Number
1999.011.0001
Alternate object names
Condor Plate;Dish
Materials
Description
Because it is almost wholly-Incan in design, this silver plate recovered from the wreck of the 1622 galleon Atocha is very rare. The general form of the plate is known from other ceramic examples; this is the only in silver. A central heraldic engraving shows two condors holding a “mascaipacha,” the fringed scarlet cloth reserved for the foreheads of Incan kings. On either side of the round, central figure are sets of “tocapu,” stylized, geometric patterns that some believe are a yet-to-be-deciphered form of writing. The plate almost surely came from the Andean city of Potosí, where so much of the silver wealth aboard the Atocha originated.
Dimensions

19.9 x 17.6 cm

Exhibition Label
Case/Object Caption (2023):

Heraldic Plate And Beakers
Silver (Peru, Inca, c.1620)
Gift of Dr. Edwin Davis, Jr., Elliott Dechon, Jr., Mel and Dolores Fisher, Treasure Salvors Inc., Museum Acquisition Fund
1987.013.0001, 1998.001.0001, 1999.011.0001

This serving plate is possibly the most significant artifact in the museum’s collection. It has been designed to blend Inca and European decorative conventions in a way that has never been seen elsewhere.

It features two condors, the royal birds of the Inca. They hold a mascaypacha, the woven forelock that originally could only be worn by the reigning Inca emperor. Its pattern had heraldic implications, like a European coat of arms. In colonial times, after the emperor was long deposed, his descendants wore a mascaypacha to affirm their right to rule over their people either independently or under a Spanish overlord.

At a feast, friends would have toasted each other using the Inca drinking vessels, known as aquillas. This pair was found on the wreck of Nuestra Señora de Atocha, stored stacked one inside the other in the traditional manner. Images on the better-preserved beaker show the mountain of Potosí, a church, and scenes of caravans of llamas and herders, as well as miners going to work. They were most likely made by one of the three Indigenous silversmiths working in Potosí at that time.
Previous Exhibition Label (Removed 2022):

Plate
Recovered from Nuestra Señora de Atocha
Gifts from Dolores Fisher

The geometric stripe from handle to handle is traditionally seen in Inca plates but it is interrupted in this piece by the cartouche, which is European in form but Inca in symbolism. The condor is a sacred bird of the Andes, here they are depicted holding traditional headdress of the Inca king, much as a lion might hold a shield in European culture.
Previous Exhibition Label (with Illustration of Inca Male):

HERALDIC PLATE
Silver (Peru, Inca, c1620)
Gift of Dr, Edwin Davis, Jr. Elliot Deehon, Jr, Mel and Dolores Fisher
1999.011.0001

This serving plate, with its combination of Inca and European elements, is possibly the most significant artifact in the museum’s collection. Its shape is traditionally Inca. What makes it unique is that the design has been modified to blend Inca and European decorative conventions. It features two condors, the royal birds of the Inca. They hold a mascaypacha, the woven coronet that originally could only be worn by the reigning Inca emperor. Its pattern had heraldic implications, similar to a European coat of arms. In colonial times, after the emperor was long deposed, his descendants often adopted wearing a mascaypacha to afform their tight to rule over their people either independently or under a Spanish overlord.