El Museo del Oro

unpaginated with 50 plates (some in color) and maps. Quarto (11 1/4" x 8 1/2") bound in brown blind stamped boards with string ties to spine. First edition. Gregorio Hernández de Alba is one of the founding 'fathers' of archeology and anthropology in Colombia. His intellectual contributions surpassed the academic level: Hernández de Alba was an active defender of the indigenous people. In 1934, the Bank of the Republic began helping to protect the archaeological patrimony of Colombia. The object known as Poporo Quimbaya was the first one in a collection. It has been on exhibition for 70 years. The Museum is today administered by Banrepcultural. The museum houses the famous Muisca golden raft found in Pasca in 1969, that represents the ceremony of the new zipa (ruler) of Bacatá, the basis for the El Dorado myth. The heir to the chieftaincy assumed power with a great offering to the gods. In this representation he is seen standing at the centre of a raft, surrounded by the principal chieftains, all of them adorned with gold and feathers. Condition: Provenance of Colegio Nueva Granada with their stamp to title and occasionally throughout. Damp stained, covers soiled and rubbed, 48 color plates of the 50, edges and hinges rubbed, corners bumped, gilt to cover dulled else good.