Latin American Textiles

© Photograph by J. Claire Odland.

This woman's blouse is a ceremonial sobrehuipil from Comalapa. It would be worn over another huipil without putting the hands through the armholes, as shown in the photograph taken in Comalapa in 1988 by J. Claire Odland. It is backstrap loomed of handspun natural brown cotton warps and wefts, in three panels of four selvedges each. The round neck is trimmed with pale blue taffeta ribbon, with center and shoulder medallions with long, loose ribbon tails of the same, hand sewn. Silk, wool and cotton supplementary wefts are two faced and discontinuous in multicolor figures; some in raised pile; wefts are continuous in the red wool shoulder stripe called the creya and the multicolor stripes. Rare, three panel construction; perfectly designed and executed alignment. Collected by Florence D. Bartlett, founder of the Santa Fe Museum of Folk Arts. Garment measures 58 cm long x 117 cm wide.

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