Muisca Raft (El Dorado)

The Muisca Raft depicts the legendary El Dorado ceremony, where a new Muisca king covered himself in gold dust and floated on Lake Guatavita to make offerings to the gods. Created around 1200 CE from tumbaga (gold-copper alloy), the 7.7-inch sculpture shows the king surrounded by attendants on a raft, about to plunge gold objects into the sacred lake.

Spanish conquistadors heard tales of this golden king (El Dorado) and spent decades searching for his legendary city of gold. The ceremony actually commemorated the investiture of new rulers, who washed off the gold dust and cast precious objects into the lake. The Muisca Raft proves the legend had a basis in real ritual practice.

The raft is the most famous treasure of the Museo del Oro in Bogotá.