Lot 203A
Pre-Columbian, Peru, Chancay culture, ca. 1300 to 1470 CE. A triangular panel of woven cloth, made of cotton and camelid fibers, and decorated with a repeated pattern of attendants holding avian creatures, with a flat, undecorated belt sewn to its top, a long strip hanging down and decorated with a figure of what is probably a god or maybe a lord, and a bright red fringe sewn around its lower edges and the end of the strip. Comes mounted. Size: 24.15" W x 32.25" H (61.3 cm x 81.9 cm); size of mount: Size: 28075" W x 36" H (71310.5 cm x 91.4 cm)
The people of the early cultures in the Andes buried their dead in bundles with woven textiles, sometimes wearing clothing like this loincloth. These often have repetitive, almost fractal patterns, often placed inside of frames, and with color sequences designed to make the viewer look across them diagonally. The red color is probably from cochineal, a bright red insect, while the yellow and black colors would have come from various plants. The dry, cold climate of the Andes preserved these textiles. As time went on, their designs changed - from ca. 1300 CE onward, motifs began to emphasize anthropomorphic figures rather than geometric abstractions. The iconography of these textiles remains unclear, but some scholars have advanced the theory that figures shown face on (like the one at the bottom of the strip) are gods and figures shown in profile are their attendants. This particular example is in better condition than many held by museums!
Provenance: Ex-Private New York Collection, ex Jean-Eugene Lions collection, Geneva
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#119531
- Condition: Light wear and staining to the belt; overall color has faded and there are small places as shown where threads are missing from the main motif; the tassels of the fringe are nearly all present and the piece is overall very well-preserved compared to similar examples.
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