Art Institute of Chicago

Tunic

Paracas

Date

200 BCE-1 BCE

Medium

Wool (camelid), simple looping; applied wool (camelid) braided neck edging; and unspun wool fringe

Culture

Peru

Department

Textiles

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This tunic is identifiable through the slit at the center to accommodate the wearer’s head and neck. The geometric design of interlaced stepped diagonal lines suggests the twisting together of threads to make yarn, a fitting motif for a textile. Similar motifs appear on ceramic vessels made by the Paracas; the use of the same twisted-thread design across different media demonstrates a consistent visual language and attests to the primacy of textiles as a means of aesthetic expression for the Paracas.

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