This is a pair of fine-wire cast filigree gold-alloy ear-ornaments.
The silhouette of the earrings is predominantly fan-shaped and comprises multiple layers of concentric arc bands. The principal, larger central motifs are separated by three layers of double-strand twisted wires (rope pattern / hilos torcidos), also referred to as figure-of-eight metal wires. The spaces between and along the edges of these layers feature four continuous bands of zig-zag, diagonally criss-crossed openwork netting. The upper section of the fan-shaped body is flanked on both sides by small M-shaped geometric crests, with the outer ends terminating in spiral decorations (espirales). Some scholars posit that these represent birds facing beak-to-beak, with the spirals constituting the avian bodies; these upper crest decorations (adornos superiores) serve as a hallmark feature of Zenú metallurgy.
The craft technology employed by Zenú metalworkers predominantly centred on lost-wax casting (cera perdida), forming the pieces in a single casting process. The artisans initially rendered and wove the patterns over a clay core using extremely fine beeswax strips measuring approximately 0.5 to 1 mm in diameter—termed fine filigree (filigrana fina)—before casting them in tumbaga (a gold-copper alloy) or high-purity gold. To distinguish this method from traditional filigree work, which involves heating and bending metal, cast filigree is occasionally designated as false filigree.
This artefact type belongs primarily to the Early Zenú Metallurgy (la orfebrería Zenú temprana) tradition and persisted into the subsequent San Jorge-Cauca Group (Grupo San Jorge-Cauca). Cast filigree earrings of this type have been excavated from sacrificial pits along the lower reaches of the San Jorge River (Río San Jorge). Associated charcoal samples subjected to radiocarbon dating (IAN 61) indicate an earliest date of AD 450 ± 90 (approximately the fifth century AD), with the overall provenance assigned to a range of AD 600 to 1500.
Earrings of this class represent the most numerous and widely distributed class of metalwork recovered from the Caribbean Lowlands (Llanuras del Caribe) of Colombia. Almost all specimens have been unearthed from artificial burial mounds (túmulos funerarios / mogotes) characteristic of the region, functioning as grave goods (ajuar) for high-ranking elites, rulers, or shamans (piaches), or as sacrificial offerings deposited in votive pits (depósitos de ofrendas). The earrings typically occur in pairs (parejas). Evidence from anthropomorphic metal figurines and ceramic statuettes (figurinas cerámicas) suggests that nobility or ritual officiants sometimes wore multiple earrings (multiple orejeras) placed through various perforations along the entire rim of the auricle. Scholars believe that the double-hooked spirals and openwork mesh atop the fan represent stylized indigenous symbolism for snakes (serpiente, denoting the aquatic and underworld realms) and birds (aves, masters of the celestial realm).
Following the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in the Caribbean Lowlands during the sixteenth century AD, the pre-Columbian Zenú civilization underwent drastic upheaval and transformation. In the early colonial period, lured by rumours of vast riches, the Spanish systematically plundered local burial mounds, melting down innumerable gold ornaments into bullion for transport to Europe. Ensuing enslavement, massacres, and introduced epidemic diseases precipitated a catastrophic collapse of the indigenous population. Consequently, the vast hydraulic canal system—spanning over 500,000 hectares of interconnected waterways—fell into disuse and was gradually reclaimed by marshes. Although sophisticated metallurgical techniques were forcibly interrupted under colonial oppression, the surviving Zenú descendants adapted through racial intermixing and resettlement. They transferred their ancestral aesthetic of geometric woven mesh from metalworking to plant-fibre crafts, utilizing caña flecha grass to weave the Sombrero Vueltiao (Sinú hat), an item that stands today as an iconic symbol of Colombian national culture.
該器型主要屬於「早期澤努金工（La orfebrería Zenú temprana）」傳統，並延續發展至後期的「聖豪爾赫-考卡群（Grupo San Jorge-Cauca）」。在聖豪爾赫河（Río San Jorge）下游祭祀坑中，出土了此類鑄造累絲耳飾，同出的木炭樣本經碳十四測年（IAN 61）確定年代最早為西元450±90年（即約公元五世紀）。來源則定為相近的公元600-1500年。
此類耳飾是哥倫比亞加勒比平原（Llanuras del Caribe）出土數量最多、分佈最廣的金工器物。幾乎全數出土於加勒比平原特有的人工墓葬土丘（Túmulos funerarios / Mogotes）中，作為高級精英、統治者或巫師（Piaches）的隨葬品（Ajuar）與祭祀置物坑（Depósitos de ofrendas）中的獻祭金器。耳飾通常成對（Parejas）出現。根據金工擬人雕像與陶偶（Figurinas cerámicas）的表現，當時貴族或儀式主持者有時會在整個耳輪邊緣多孔串戴（Multiple orejeras）。扇面頂部的雙勾渦捲與網格，學術界認為反映了原住民對蛇（Serpiente，象徵水界與地下世界）與鳥類（Aves，高空主宰）的符號化表現。
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