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Nasca-Huari Feathered Panel

Room 5, Vitrine 60


Featherwork
Coast of southern Peru
Fusion Epoch (800 AD – 1300 AD)
ML600003

  • Material: Cotton thread and macaw (Ara ararauna) body feathers.
  • Technique: Simple plain weave decorated with feathers sewn onto it.
  • The design and colors evoke the Andean concept of complementary duality. The golden yellow represents the sun, while the turquoise blue represents the ocean.
  • The cords at the edges suggest that this standard was used to decorate the walls of temples or ceremonial spaces.
  • This was probably part of the cache of 96 similar worked pieces discovered rolled, placed into large ceramic jars, and buried in the arid soil, at the site Corral Redondo, Ocoña valley (Arequipa), South Coast of Perú.