Cup (kero): Confrontation Between Incas and Antis, and Possibly a Royal Marriage

Presented as gifts by Inca emperors in the past, keros are still used during rituals. Symbols of social reciprocity, they are always made in pairs as, in the Andes, one must never drink alone. While Inca-period keros were adorned with geometric designs, those from the colonial era were decorated with figurative scenes. They reprised certain European painting conventions, but the images selected as well as their use contributed to celebrating the Inca past. On the lower register of this cup, Inca warriors (representing order) clash with their counterparts from the Anti (an Amazonian people representing disorder). In the upper back register, a royal couple is shown seated, possibly on the occasion of their marriage. Between adaptation and resistance, among the Quechua the keros of the colonial era were the favoured means of Indigenous expression for preserving Inca memory and identity.