Latin American Textiles

© The Field Museum, A114262D

Since these saddlebags have 4 woven selvedges, they must have been woven on a backstrap loom. They are brocaded in figures of birds, animals, deer, pairs of men and women and letters, and are trimmed in braided cord with pompoms. They are 96 cm long and 45 cm wide, and are very flat. They would not hold a great deal, as llamas refuse to carry heavy loads. Cords are separate (not part of collection) and would have been tied around animal and bag together once loaded.

For further reading, see Hidden Threads of Peru, by Anne Rowe, Textile Museum, Washington DC, 2002, and p. 32, Fig. 1.10, photo by Emilio Rodriguez.

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