One of the pre-Columbian world’s most sophisticated handicrafts in gold was developed along the coasts and mountains of Central America’s far south.

Using the “lost wax” technique, the metalworkers made small, detailed gold objects.

The technique involved molding a figure in wax, covering it with clay and baking it, so that the clay hardens and the wax melts, leaving a mold inside that can be filled with smelted gold.