Quimbaya civilization

Quimbaya civilization

The Quimbaya civilization is a South American civilization, noted for its spectacular goldwork characterized by its technical accuracy and detailed designs. The majority of the goldwork is made in tumbaga alloy, with 30% copper, which gives to the pieces beautiful color tonalities. They inhabited the areas corresponding the modern departments of Quindío, Caldas and Risaralda in Colombia, around the valley of the Cauca river. There is no clear data about when they were initially established but it is currently set round the first century B.C.

The quimbaya people reached their apogee of development during the 4th to 7th century A.C., period known as the Quimbaya Classic. From this period is the most emblematic piece of this culture: the Poporo Quimbaya (currently exhibited in the Gold Museum. The most frequent designs in the artpieces are anthropomorphic, depicting men and women sitting, with closed eyes and placid expression. There are also many designs of fruits and poporos.

Most of the retrieved items are part of funeral offers, found in the inside of sarcophagus made of hollow trunks. The gold represented a sacred metal and the passport for the afterlife. Around the 10th century A.C. the Quimbaya culture disappeared entirely due to unknown circumstances; the studies of the archeological items points to an advanced cultural development and the political structure of a cacicazgo with separated groups dedicated to pottery, religion, trade, goldwork and war.

See also

* Indigenous peoples in Colombia
* Spanish Empire
* Population history of Amerindians
* Malagana treasure


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Quimbaya, Quindío — Quimbaya is a town and municipality in the western part of the department of Quindío, Colombia. It is located 20 km northwest of the departmental capital Armenia. The name of the city is derivated of the name of the precolumbian culture that… …   Wikipedia

  • Quimbaya — is a Pre Columbian term. It may mean: *The Quimbaya civilization of western Colombia *Quimbaya, Quindío, a municipality in the department of Quindío in Colombia …   Wikipedia

  • Quimbaya museum — Infobox Museum name= Quimbaya Museum Museo Quimbaya established= 1987 location= Armenia,Colombia visitors= director= Martha Usaquen website= www.banrep.gov.co/museo/esp/boletin/51/castro.htmlQuimbaya Museum is a museum located in Armenia designed …   Wikipedia

  • Norte Chico civilization — Norte Chico redirects here. For other uses, see Norte Chico (disambiguation). History of Peru This article is part of a series …   Wikipedia

  • Maya civilization — This article is about the pre Columbian Maya civilization. For a discussion of the modern Maya, see Maya peoples. For other meanings of the word Maya, see Maya …   Wikipedia

  • Quindío Department — Department of Quindío Departamento del Quindío   Department   …   Wikipedia

  • Industrie minière en Colombie — Monument aux mineurs à Segovia. L’Industrie minière en Colombie se réfère à l extraction de minéraux de valeur ou d autres ressources géologiques en Colombie, où le sous sol est riche en minéraux et en ressources énergétiques. Celui ci renferme… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Mineral industry of Colombia — Monument to the miners. Segovia, Antioquia Mining in …   Wikipedia

  • Tumbaga — Un pectoral en tumbaga, de la culture Quimbaya (en); 300–1600 ap. J. C.. Le …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Colombian peso — Peso colombiano (Spanish) …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”