Contemporary Peruvian textile artists are predominantly of mixed Andean and Spanish ancestry, and they illustrate a mastery of their craft that draws strongly upon this Andean-Mestizo heritage. Fine textiles served as symbols of wealth and socioeconomic status among Pre-Columbian Andean cultures because of the fine fabrics, their elaborate weaving techniques, and their labor-intensive designs.

Although this textile was created in the 20th century as a souvenir for the tourist-trade, the size and construction of the cloth indicates that the weaver created it using a traditional backstrap loom. This textile also features a repeated border design known as the stepped fret, a motif common throughout Pre-Columbian Andean cultures. The design combines two motifs that likely illustrate the land-water relationship of the Andean region. The stepped motif consists of stair-like steps, which likely symbolize terrace farming in the steep mountainous landscape of eastern Peru. The fret, meanwhile, is an angular spiral shape that likely depicts a wave that symbolizes water and the western coastline of Peru.

The central motif of this textile consists of two simplified figures with triangular torsos and headdresses. The zigzag patterns on the torsos likely illustrate simplified textile motifs, which may indicate region or societal ranking. The projecting headdresses derive from the extravagant, high-status headgear of the ancient Moche and Chimú cultures of northern Peru. These figures may therefore be generalized depictions of deities or supernatural beings — but they could also depict an elite member of Andean society, such as a religious practitioner, a political leader, or a high-status soldier.

 

 

 

For more information, you may contact the researcher(s) noted in the title of this exhibit entry, or Dr. Billie Follensbee, the professor of the course, at BillieFollensbee@MissouriState.edu