Chavin Blackware Vessel

The creature sits atop this blackware vessel, appears to be some kind of Peruvian satyr, half human, but with animal characteristics. It is not clear exactly what he raises to his mouth, though it is possibly a conch shell, used in Ancient Peru as a trumpet to herald the approach of the nobility. The odd symbols etched on the side might represent a boat, perhaps the vessel of a king or God. What does it all mean? The answers are lost in time, though the mystery only adds to the vessel’s appeal.