Utterly simple, this black ware vessel makes a timeless appeal to the senses. Unusual for its total lack of adornment, this superb vase conveys its artistic power through shape alone. Imitating the natural gourd forms which were the original Peruvian vessels, it was intended to hold liquid as a burial offering. Shaped without benefit of a potter's wheel, burnished by hand to a high luster, it connects us directly to the vanished lives that first created it, held it and admired it centuries ago.