Staff God

The Staff God is a major deity in Andean cultures. Usually pictured holding a staff in each hand, with fanged teeth and splayed and clawed feet, his other characteristics are unknown, although he is often pictured with snakes in his headdress or clothes.
The oldest known depiction of the Staff God was found on some broken gourd fragments in a burial site in the Pativilca River Valley (Norte Chico region) and carbon dated to 2250BC. This makes it the oldest image of a god to be found in the Americas.
==External links==
* Field Museum links
* New Scientist article on the find in Patavilca
* Archaeology magazine article, with photo and illustration of the Staff God
Category:Inca mythology
Category:Inca gods