A Family
of Parrot Keepers
Chancay or Chimu culture
Tallest figure: 7"

Clever, long-lived, and communicative, parrots are easily tamed; they were apparently bred and raised on the coast from early periods. Indeed, these birds are unique for the way they interact with people; that relationship surely influenced the lively tableau shown here, which portrays an entire family (traders? breeders?) holding pet birds. Parrots seem to break through the autonomous nature of undomesticated animals; this impression is enhanced, of course, by their well-known ability to mimic human speech. The fact that parrots can “talk” like people underscored their shamanic nature; conversely, in South America, shamans sing, whistle, and know how to speak the language of the birds.