Simple yet elegant in form, this appealing vessel is burnished with a rich red slip. The top of the pot is adorned with abstract patterns in yellow and black whose symbolism is obscure. A pair of scorpions, considered in Peru and elsewhere to be magical creatures, guards the spout heraldically. Are they here to frighten evil spirits away from the bottle's contents? Or do they act as a kind of poison label, warning us to beware before we drink? Time has caused the mysterious contents to disappear, but the outside of the bottle has grown ever lovelier with the centuries.