Proto-Nazca Indigo Mantle | Munecas Border, ex-Merrin
Pre-Columbian, Peru, South Coast, Proto-Nazca, ca. 100 BCE – 200 CE. A broad expanse of camelid wool steeped in deep indigo, its lower edge crowned by one of the most inventive border traditions in Andean weaving. Fourteen stylized human heads, worked in single-needle cross-knit looping, grin out in red, gold, blue and olive, each trailing a thick hank of dark brown yarn as hair. Above them run stacked registers of stepped and geometric motifs in polychrome wool, the fret patterns interlocking in the reciprocal rhythm favored on the south coast. Panels of this scale served as mantles or funerary wrappings, layered around seated bundles in desert cemeteries where the arid sand preserved dye and fiber alike. Mounted for display: professionally sewn to a cloth backing on a wooden stretcher. Size: 32" W x 58" H (81.3 cm W x 147.3 cm H).
The three-dimensional knitted figures known as munecas are a hallmark of the Paracas Necropolis and early Nazca horizon on Peru's south coast. Built up stitch by stitch with a single needle in cross-knit looping, a technique unrelated to European knitting, they were worked directly onto the fringe of a woven cloth so that the small heads and figures projected free of the surface and moved as the textile moved. Their repertoire ranges from trophy heads and masked ritualists to birds, felines and plants, and their reading is contested: some scholars see agricultural fertility imagery, others the ancestral or captured heads that dominate south coast iconography more broadly.
Indigo of this depth required repeated immersion and oxidation, and the dye was among the most labor-intensive available to Andean weavers. Reserving so large a field for a single saturated color, then concentrating all pattern into the lower band, is a deliberate compositional decision, not an economy.
Provenance: Private NYC. collection Ex. E.H. Merrin Gallery Inc., NYC., 1980’s.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73251
Condition
Professionally sewn to a cloth backing on a wooden stretcher. A small loss near the center of the indigo panel, and some fading around the loss, otherwise overall Excellent condition.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Sale price
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
Pre-Columbian, Peru, South Coast, Proto-Nazca, ca. 100 BCE – 200 CE. A broad expanse of camelid wool steeped in deep indigo, its lower edge crowned by one of the most inventive border traditions in Andean weaving. Fourteen stylized human heads, worked in single-needle cross-knit looping, grin out in red, gold, blue and olive, each trailing a thick hank of dark brown yarn as hair. Above them run stacked registers of stepped and geometric motifs in polychrome wool, the fret patterns interlocking in the reciprocal rhythm favored on the south coast. Panels of this scale served as mantles or funerary wrappings, layered around seated bundles in desert cemeteries where the arid sand preserved dye and fiber alike. Mounted for display: professionally sewn to a cloth backing on a wooden stretcher. Size: 32" W x 58" H (81.3 cm W x 147.3 cm H).
The three-dimensional knitted figures known as munecas are a hallmark of the Paracas Necropolis and early Nazca horizon on Peru's south coast. Built up stitch by stitch with a single needle in cross-knit looping, a technique unrelated to European knitting, they were worked directly onto the fringe of a woven cloth so that the small heads and figures projected free of the surface and moved as the textile moved. Their repertoire ranges from trophy heads and masked ritualists to birds, felines and plants, and their reading is contested: some scholars see agricultural fertility imagery, others the ancestral or captured heads that dominate south coast iconography more broadly.
Indigo of this depth required repeated immersion and oxidation, and the dye was among the most labor-intensive available to Andean weavers. Reserving so large a field for a single saturated color, then concentrating all pattern into the lower band, is a deliberate compositional decision, not an economy.
Provenance: Private NYC. collection Ex. E.H. Merrin Gallery Inc., NYC., 1980’s.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73251
Condition
Professionally sewn to a cloth backing on a wooden stretcher. A small loss near the center of the indigo panel, and some fading around the loss, otherwise overall Excellent condition.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Sale price
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
