This page is referenced by:

• 1 2024-08-22T13:59:22+00:00 Poncho de Jilacata (Aymara) 13 plain 2026-03-26T12:59:49+00:00 Maker Once Known, Aymara People (Bolivia)
  Poncho de Jilacata (Pre 1967)
  wool
  52.50 x 46.50 cm
  Field collected by Dwight B. Heath
  66-4179
  
  This tiny textile is a miniature poncho. It is made of finely woven multicolored wool. Reflecting on its small size, Head Curator Thierry Gentis suggests that it was possibly made for dressing a saint's statue. This is a tradition that is widespread throughout the former Spanish colonies in South and Central America, when saint's statues are brought out of the church for veneration. A good discussion of this practice appears in this exhibit on Dressing the Saints, which features Mayan Catholic practice in Guatemala, where the local indigenous beliefs have mingled and merged with Catholic doctrine, leading to the development of cofradias, brotherhoods or sisterhoods dedicated to religious practice. As part of these commingled beliefs, representations of the Saints are frequently dressed in local dress, and will be brought out of the church or other religious spaces for processions. While the Aymara of Bolivia also converted to Catholicism under Spanish colonial rule, their conversion has been less integrated into modern daily life, and many Aymara today ascribe to a more traditional, indigenous belief system rather than a strictly Catholic one. Given this poncho's diminutive size, it certainly could have been used for a small Saint's statue, or it may have been intended for a doll or perhaps even an infant.
  
  According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art:

  "The Aymara, who live on the altiplano (high plateau) of Peru, Bolivia, and Chile, are excellent spinners and skilled weavers of fine yarns made from camelid fiber, most commonly from llama, alpaca, or vicuña. Having developed a highly complex dyeing technique as evidenced by the depth, evenness, and endurance of the brilliant colors seen in their textiles, the Aymara often integrate a rich spectrum of colors within their weavings. Over half a dozen colors, ranging from reds and yellows to blues and greens, may be artfully incorporated into a single textile through the use of stripes, a prevailing design composition amongst Aymara weavings."

  This miniature poncho certainly epitomizes this style. With its fine fringing on the edges and detailing at the shoulders, it is a remarkable piece. To see another example of an Aymara poncho, visit the National Museum of the American Indian catalogue.