The combination of modeling, incision, burnishing, and combing used on some vessels resulted in striking compositions that appear entirely abstract to modern eyes, but the designs on others are engagingly direct, such as a bottle depicting a three-dimensional mouse whose tail, rendered in low relief, extends to the edge of the vessel’s shoulder (昀椀g. 13). The combination of the high sheen of the burnished sections such as the spout with the robustly textured surfaces creates a dynamic formal contrast that animates the composition. Muted, matte tones of gray, black, and tan were more common in early ceramics—as noted above, the color typically derived from the hue of the clay body itself—but occasionally potters applied polychrome pigments, such as vibrant reds, after 昀椀ring to create a more dramatic visual e昀昀ect. One tall bottle said to be from Tembladera, in the Jequetepeque Valley, has well-preserved surface paint (昀椀g. 14). The head of a composite, supernatural creature with feline, bird, and caimanlike features is rendered snout up, with a curl- ing tongue that emerges from the fanged mouth. To the right of the eye, a 昀氀ange on the side of the vessel details 11. Bottle with fang motif. Cupisnique; Peru, 800–500 bce. Ceramic, H. 7 in. (17.8 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Gift of Judith Riklis, 1983 (1983.546.12) at monumental ceremonial centers; some were smashed and discarded, while others were reused before they were 9 eventually deposited in burials. Either way, the objects were removed from circulation, prompting a need for further production, displays of chie昀氀y hospitality, and 10 opportunities for creative exploration. Early Andean ceramics vary in quality, and some clearly received greater attention in their manufacture, suggesting that they were destined for a speci昀椀c use or specialized role. A vessel in the shape of a feline, for example, was carefully polished, and then small circles were engraved on the sur- face, perhaps in emulation of the spots on a creature’s pelt (昀椀g. 12). Such 昀椀ne works may have served as gifts or been 12. Feline-shaped stirrup-spout bottle. Cupisnique; North Coast, displayed prominently in rituals, where the iconography Peru, 1200–800 bce. Ceramic, H. 9 ⼀椀 in. (23.2 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial 14 perhaps signaled rank and authority. Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1968 (1978.412.217)