1983.W.1818 Loom sword (Peru, Andean coast)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Textiles are some of the finest and most specialized arts of the Andes, providing fundamental information regarding regional production, developed techniques, and adopted styles. This wooden implement represents one of the principal tools used in textile manufacture. Loom swords served to separate warps and compact wefts in textile manufacture on a loom.
1983.W.1815 Loom sword (Peru, Andean coast)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Textiles are some of the finest and most specialized arts of the Andes, providing fundamental information regarding regional production, developed techniques, and adopted styles. This wooden implement represents one of the principal tools used in textile manufacture. Loom swords served to separate warps and compact wefts in textile manufacture on a loom.
1989.W.2435 Tunic fragment with diamond waistband (Peru, Inka)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This “diamond waistband” tunic fragment reflects the high standardization of Inca tapestry textiles. It bears a zigzag embroidery at the base, as well as a striped selvedge, or edge, completion. Unlike the other tapestry-woven Inca uncu, however, the “diamond waistband” tunics regularly utilize cotton warps with camelid fiber wefts.
1994.281 Tunic with painted yoke and bird forms (Peru, north coast)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Painted textiles on the Andean coast date from at least the Early Horizon (900-200 BCE) and the discovery of preserved examples at Carhua (Karwa) on the Peruvian southern coast. Succeeding coastal populations continued to produce elaborate painted textiles, utilizing a range of plant dyes and mineral pigments on plain weave cotton fabric.
1983.W.2229 Tunic with alternating stylized birds (Peru, central coast?)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This elaborate tunic consists of two panels seamed together at the center. The sleeves and collar are finished with supplemental embroidered edges. The stripes are vertical with three decorated bands on either side separated by thin stripes of blue, yellow, green, and red. The decorated bands portray alternating diagonal rows of bird forms and simple heads, possibly feline with pointed ears.
2006.27 Tunic with stepped triangles and birds in medallions (Peru, central coast)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This tunic displays four pairs of natural brown and cream camelid fiber fields linked together through red, brown, and yellow zigzags, which all angle downward from the same direction. Crenulated diamond-shaped medallions in the upper and lower fields feature double-headed sea birds with marked eyes flanked by triangles.
John Sennhauser (1909-1978)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The Swiss-born painter John Sennhauser belonged to the group of American artists who experimented with geometric abstraction in the 1930s and 40s. He immigrated to the United States in 1928 following two years of study at the Royal Academy in Venice. After settling in New York City he pursued further studies at the Cooper Union Art School (1930-1933) where he began experimenting with non-objective form as a means of expression.
1989.W.2433 Tunic (Peru, central coast)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This striped tunic presents a local highland tunic style worn during the Late Horizon (1400-1532 CE). Almost identical tunics were woven with both camelid fiber and cotton and thus likely pertain to coastal valleys. The neckline and edges are simple, with a short fringe along the base. The technique used to create the base of this tunic, however, was relatively complex.
1976.W.2062 Small dress (Peru, Inka)
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This small textile served as a dress for either a young Inca (Inka) female or a figurine. The textile features wide cream and red bands with blue stripes, as well as red, blue, and yellow designs. These colors and zigzag designs with circles were common to elite Inca textiles. A larger dress of near identical composition was recovered from the south-central coast site of Pachacamac.