Tray for Hallucinogenic Snuff

Carved wood trays were used by ancient Andean people for the mixing of hallucinogenic snuff made from the pod seeds of the Anadenanthera tree. When inhaled through the nose with tubes, the snuff produced ecstatic trances that enabled shamans to communicate with spirits and ancestors. This carved snuff tray from northern Chile is decorated with two kneeling anthropomorphic foxes. The depressions in the eyes probably once held turquoise inlays. The figures’ pose and tunics decorated with incised designs suggest that they are supernatural beings.