Gold of El Dorado

Through works of gold and ceramic made by the inhabitants of Colombia before the European invasion, visitors to this exhibition are introduced to people who used gold in religious and cultural rituals, buried their dead with golden treasures, adorned themselves with gold, and blazed trade routes from the sea coast to high mountain plateaus, exchanging gold for salt and other goods. Though most of their culture is lost to us, they lay claim to our shared human nature through the sheen of gold.