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The Muisca generally did not do much else in the way of finishing their gold work, and the Muisca raft followed that trend. [50] There was no effort to fix casting errors, and the surface remained unpolished; charcoal remnants from the mould were left in crevices on the figures. [50]
The Muisca were famous for the fine goldworking, here seen in different figures. Most famous were the Muisca for their goldworking. The majority of historical artefacts in the world are made of gold and tumbaga, a copper-gold-silver alloy. Gold was not common in the Muisca territories as a primary resource and was obtained through trade.
The Muisca had an economy and society considered to have been one of the most powerful of the American Post-Classic stage, mainly because of the precious resources of the area: gold and emeralds. When the Spaniards arrived in Muisca territory they found a rich state, with the Muisca Confederation controlling mining of the following products:
Gold- and waxworking tools of the Muisca, Museo del Oro, Bogotá The Muisca were famous for their goldworking. Although in the Muisca Confederation gold deposits were not abundant, the people obtained a lot of gold through trading , mainly in La Tora (called Barrancabermeja today) and other locations at the Magdalena River . [ 14 ]
The zipa used to cover his body in gold dust, and from his raft, he offered treasures to the Guatavita goddess in the middle of the sacred lake. This Muisca tradition became the origin of the legend of El Dorado. Muisca raft in the Gold Museum, Bogotá, Colombia Votive objects found at the bottom of Lake Guatavita. British Museum [4]
The main skill of the Muisca was their goldworking. The Muisca made pectoral pieces, nose rings (narigueras), earrings, plates, poporos and other figures from the gold they traded with the surrounding indigenous groups, such as the Muzo, Panche, Guane, Pijao and others. One of the most common finds of these gold or tumbaga figures are the ...
The Muisca offered various precious materials to their gods; tunjos, were small anthropomorph or zoomorph offer figures made of gold or tumbaga (an alloy of gold, silver and copper). Many of the tunjos have been recovered from various sites and are displayed in the Museo del Oro .
The gold artifacts consist of pendants, lip-plugs, nose ornaments, necklaces, and earrings. The Tairona cast a meltable mixture of gold, silver and copper called Tumbaga into intricate moulds using clay, sand, charcoal and lost wax. Depletion gilding, using controlled corrosion to remove copper from the surface, gave the appearance of solid gold.