Cloth

Warp-faced fabrics with three or four selvedges are woven by women on the indigenous style loom, a staked-out horizontal ground loom, or an adjustable tension (body) loom. The technique and structure have pre-Conquest antecedents, and as in ancient times, the fabrics are used in their rectangular form without cutting or shaping. Llikllas are used as carrying cloths by women. The cargo, frequently a swaddled child, is wrapped in the cloth and and carried on the back by knotting 2 opposite corners across the chest. Most women appearing outside the housing compound will have at least 1 lliklla tied on their back.

Woven by Sylvia Yucra de Huatta, a young married woman, and used by her for over 6 months.

carrying cloth

Plain colour areas or stripes are warp-faced plain weave.

Cloth woven from black wool with four thin red stripes. The cloth is composed of two complete loom widths sewn together with a flat figure eight stitch along one side.