Thumb Rest of a Spear Thrower (600–1000): Art, History and Details

Thumb Rest of a Spear Thrower (600–1000) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This object was lashed to a spear thrower, where it served as a thumb rest or grip. The imagery is suited to the use: a supernatural being throttles a human, turning its head to expose its throat to a knife the being holds in one hand. Thus, the scene captures the crucial moment of an offering likely intended to assure the benevolence of divine forces.

Object facts

• Title: Thumb Rest of a Spear Thrower
• Date: 600–1000
• Culture: Andes, Wari people
• Type: Tools and Equipment
• Technique: Bone
• Dimensions: Overall: 7.1 x 2.1 cm (2 13/16 x 13/16 in.)
• Collection: AA - Andes
• Department: Art of the Americas
• Accession number: 2017.58

A detail from the museum

Spear throwers, also called atlatls, use leverage to propel a spear faster and farther.

Collection credit

Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Bergh, Susan E. “Acquisition Highlights: Pre-Columbian Art.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 58, no. 2 (March/April 2018): 8-9.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.