In many ancient pre-Columbian societies, textiles were valued more than the gold and silver so eagerly sought by the Europeans.
Among the Aztecs, cotton cloths were collected as tributes in many areas of the empires, and weavers maintained a high status among artisans and in society in general. Throughout pre-Hispanic Andean history, and even after, woven textiles represented status symbols: their intricate wefts often signified the wearer’s social position and political power.
Weaving is an Andean tradition with a history that dates back to 12,000 years ago. Recent reanalyses of three textile fragments from Guitarrero Cave, in the Callejon de Huaylas of Peru offer a new glimpse into the origin of Andean weaving tradition.
Earliest Agave Fiber Woven Textiles
Excavations of the Preceramic contexts of Guitarrero Cave produced several fragments of woven textiles and cordage, each few centimeters in length, obtained by processing the leaves of agave and bromeliad plants. These textiles represent the earliest example of woven fabrics so far known in South America.
In recent reanalyses, archaeologists have been able to identify the form and function of these specimens as well as refine the time frame of the earliest occupation of the site.
The fibers were twined to produce matting, basketry, and clothing. Archaeologists also suggest that the use of different plants may have had some functional meaning related to the properties of the fibers, since the cloth included both locally and not locally available plants.
Two of the specimens feature a more tightly twined yarn that, according to more recent archaeological and ethnographic analogies, could have been part of a flexible bag, whereas the third example, more loosely woven, seems to represent a mat fragment, used in traditional Andean homes to cover floors, walls, and for burial wrapping.
The information obtained from this textile assemblage from Guitarrero Cave not only offers a glimpse into the early stages of weaving technology of the ancient Andes, but also the importance of perishable materials in the earlier cultures of ancient Peru and the Central Andes.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guide to the Andes, and the Testiles.
Jolie Edward A., Lynch, Thomas F., Geib, Phil R., and J. M. Adovasio, 2011. Cordage, Textiles, and the Late Pleistocene Peopling of the Andes. Current Anthropology 52 (2):285-296.
Lynch, Thomas F., 1980, Guitarrero cave in its Andean Context, 1980, in Guitarrero Cave Early Man in the Andes, edited by Thomas F. Lynch, New York: Academic Press, pp. 293-320