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12017-10-15T13:35:33-07:00Irene Smitheaf68dcb4cb5259d8f2207e75ee56865474c72992442013Precolumbian Tapestry Traditionsplain2017-10-17T06:25:11-07:00Irene Smitheaf68dcb4cb5259d8f2207e75ee56865474c7299When the Inca conquered the Andes, they inherited the textile traditions and skills of the Wari, who preceded them [2]. Below is a Wari tunic, fund at Pachacamac.
However, the Inca developed textile production further, introducing strict standards for tapestries and building an empire-wide infrastructure to provide artisans with the best possible materials [1]. The two techniques addressed in the next section, weft interlocking and uncut warps, were among the innovations that the Inca brought to tapestry [1].
Inca tapestry, called cumbi, was reserved for the elite, and worn as tunics and mantles. Cumbi was woven by artisans called cumbicamoyos, who were trained to the strict standards of the Inca [1]. Evidence suggests that both men and women wove cumbi, and that textile production in general was less gendered in the Inca empire than in Europe and the Colonial empire [3, 4]. Below is an example of an Inca garment made from cumbi and very well preserved:
12017-10-16T15:19:50-07:00Wari Tunic, ca. 700-1100 AD2Gift of John Wise 1949, Cleveland Museum of Artmedia/Wari_tunic_ca700-1100.jpgplain2017-10-17T06:58:30-07:00
12017-10-16T15:19:19-07:00Inca Tunic, ca. 1450 - 15502Berlin Ethnographical Museummedia/Uncu_ca1450-1550.jpgplain2017-10-17T07:08:51-07:00
