ADFAS talk: Gold of the Gods

Chloe Sayer speaks on "Gold of the Gods"

The ancient goldsmiths of Peru and Colombia produced some of the most spectacular treasures of South America. Adept at casting and hammering, they transformed this sacred metal into elaborate pendants and breastplates, ear-ornaments, musical instruments, flasks, human figures, funerary masks, and lifelike representations of birds and animals. Colour tones went from pale yellow to deepest red.

Chloe Sayer is an independent scholar, author and curator, specialising in the art and culture of Latin America. A fluent Spanish-speaker, she has spent many years researching ancient traditions and contemporary craft skills. In 2016 the Mexican Government awarded her the prestigious Ohtli medal to thank her for her long-standing commitment to Mexican culture.

She has made collections and carried out fieldwork in Mexico and Belize for the British Museum. In 1991 she co-curated the exhibition The Skeleton at the Feast: The Mexican Day of the Dead at the Museum of Mankind in London (1991 – 1993). She has also worked extensively in Canada with Toronto’s Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), where she is a Research Associate in the Department of World Cultures. She recently co-curated an exhibition for the ROM: ¡Viva México! Clothing and Culture (2015 – 2016) and wrote the accompanying book.

 She has worked on a number of television documentaries about Mexico and Peru for the BBC and Channel 4, and regularly leads cultural tours to Mexico.