Muisca ofrendatorio with gold figurines and emeralds, Colombia

Ceramic jars full of emeralds found in temple 

Archaeologists in Colombia have found eight ceramic jars, with metallic figurines and emeralds inside, within a temple and its adjacent graves." Unnamed site near Bogotá. "The ancient Muisca (also called the Chibcha) crafted the jars called "ofrendatarios" about 600 years ago. The Muisca, a people whose civilization flourished in the region at the time, were famous for their metal-crafting skills...

"Between 1537 and 1540, the Spanish conquered the region, and many of the Muisca were killed during fighting or due to disease. [Gotta rewrite that for you: The Spanish invaded and killed most of the Muisca, who also succumbed to European diseases during the extremities they endured during the conquest. And the Spanish enslaved the survivors in their feudal encomiendas (plantations). I don't hold with using the passive voice for crimes of violence, be it rape or conquest or genocide or enslavement. ]

"Despite the destruction, the Muisca persevered and thousands of their descendants live on today." 

Another photo showing the contents of the ceramic bowl, including numerous emeralds and human and snake figurines. 

Gold figurine of a Muisca woman, ancestor or goddess.

Another figurine (possibly tumbaga alloy?) which may either be female or male with loincloth

"The Muisca people were organized in a confederation that was a loose union of states that each retained sovereignty. The confederation was not a kingdom, as there was no absolute monarch, nor was it an empire, because it did not dominate other ethnic groups or peoples. It is hard to compare the Muisca Confederation with other American civilizations, such as the Aztec or the Inca empires. The Muisca Confederation was one of the biggest and best-organized confederations of tribes on the South American continent.

"Every tribe within the confederation was ruled [sic] by a chief or a cacique. Most of the tribes were part of the Muisca ethnic group, sharing the same language and culture and forming relations through trade. They united in the face of a common enemy. The army was the responsibility of the zipa or zaque. The army was made up of the güeches, the traditional ancient warriors of the Muisca.

"The Muisca Confederation existed as the union of two lesser confederations. The southern confederation, headed by the zipa, had its capital at Bacatá (now Bogotá). This southern polity included the majority of the Muisca population and held greater economic power.

"The northern territory was ruled by the zaque, and had its capital in Hunza, known today as Tunja. Although both areas had common political relations and affinities and belonged to the same tribal nation, there were still rivalries between them. Among the territories there were four chiefdoms: Bacatá, Hunza, Duitama, and Sogamoso. The chiefdom was composed by localities. The tribes were divided into Capitanías (ruled by a capitan). There were two kinds: Great Capitania (sybyn) and Minor Capitania (uta). The status of Capitan was inherited by maternal lineage."

from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muisca

Matrilineal, but somewhat hierarchical, a common pattern in northern South America. This article says that land was inherited patrilineally, but chiefdom and religious office matrilineally. This is a somewhat unusual pattern; in my research chiefdom is the first to switch to patrilineage.

The Muisca belong to a larger Chibchan-speaking language group that spans that region and into Central America, which seems to be the center of gravity for the Chibchan peoples. The map below shows many matrilineal cultures in the Chibchan speaking world:

Other ofrendarios of this kind, gold figurines inside vessel, have been found. Don't have a site name for this one either. Female ancestor images seem to predominate (don't let the broad shoulders commonly depicted fool you).

Often the women are wearing headdresses

Which is why it would be a mistake to assume that ceramic heads like this depict men. This one dated 1200-1600 CE.

The finest Muisca figure I've found so far, typically without any identifying information.

The Muisca were skilled painters and ceramicists also

And weavers! this example from El Duende (Spirit) Cave near Santander.

Another fine fragment of Muisca weaving

A fringed mantle

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