Object Name: Short tunic
Cultural Group / Place of Origin: Nasca/Wari culture, south coast of Peru
Date: Early Intermediate Period/Early Middle Horizon, circa 500-800 CE
Materials Used: Camelid-hair warp (Z-spun, S-plied; red, blue, brown – sometimes two used together) and weft (Z-spun, S-plied); tapestry weave with interlocking joins, fringe
Dimensions: 73 x 33 cm
Credit line and Accession Number: Fowler Museum at UCLA. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert L. Lucas Jr. X86.2934.

Source: Elena Phipps, The Peruvian Four-Selvaged Cloth. Ancient Threads / New Directions. Fowler Museum Textile Series, No. 12, Los Angeles, 2013
Two four-selvaged panels are stitched together; separately woven fringe is stitched along bottom edge.
This short, wide garment is a ceremonial tunic. Its densely woven tapestry surface uses highly contrasting blue and orange to create the Nasca Proliferous-style geometric scroll designs that evolved from earlier graphic depictions. The material and technical composition may indicate highland influence. The thickly formed fringe was separately woven and then added to the bottom edge to give weight and body to the garment.