An antique Pre Columbian manner Costa Rican Nicoya pottery vessel. The vessel is made in the form of a trophy head decorated with war paint and wearing an elaborate headdress that doubles as the flared mouth of the vessel. The evocative visage gazes out from small eyes beneath curved brows displaying a sharp nose with flared nostrils, a down-turned mouth. The practice of taking human heads as warfare trophies or during ritualistic sacrifice to bring about agricultural prosperity was ubiquitous throughout Pre Columbian cultures and this piece exemplifies the practice in a highly artistic manner. Ancient and Antique Mesoamerican Pottery and Ceramic Wares, Statues, Figures, Figurines, Vessels and Table Wares, Museum Pieces, and Collectibles.