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Source Description
Inca uncu, or knee-length, sleeveless tunics were some of the most important objects made for the society, capable of carrying complex and sophisticated meanings about identity and status. This tunic, longer than it is wide (when correctly oriented), was intentionally woven from a single piece of cloth, as it was considered improper to cut fabric to create a tunic. The cloth would have a slit for the neck woven into it, and then was folded at shoulder level and stitched up the sides, leaving arm holes open at the top. While this example is not in pristine condition, its materials show that it was originally a high status garment. The very finest Inca tunics were made from very finely woven cloth called cumbi or combi, and this tunic seems to be made from this fabric. Its iconography as well shows that it was a marker of high rank - while it does not include multiple iconographic squares or tocapu covering the whole garment, they are included in the elaborate band across the waist. This type of tunic fits into the diamond-waist style. It likely indicated a rank that was accorded to an individual by the Inca king, who controlled the distribution of textiles across his empire.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
85464
label
""Uncu"" (Tunic)
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
3
Source metadata
id
85464
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
""Uncu"" (Tunic)
description
Inca uncu, or knee-length, sleeveless tunics were some of the most important objects made for the society, capable of carrying complex and sophisticated meanings about identity and status. This tunic, longer than it is wide (when correctly oriented), was intentionally woven from a single piece of cloth, as it was considered improper to cut fabric to create a tunic. The cloth would have a slit for the neck woven into it, and then was folded at shoulder level and stitched up the sides, leaving arm holes open at the top. While this example is not in pristine condition, its materials show that it was originally a high status garment. The very finest Inca tunics were made from very finely woven cloth called cumbi or combi, and this tunic seems to be made from this fabric. Its iconography as well shows that it was a marker of high rank - while it does not include multiple iconographic squares or tocapu covering the whole garment, they are included in the elaborate band across the waist. This type of tunic fits into the diamond-waist style. It likely indicated a rank that was accorded to an individual by the Inca king, who controlled the distribution of textiles across his empire.
provenance
Purchased by Georgia de Havenon, New York; given to Walters Art Museum, 2016.
date
1438-1534
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
tunics
imageCount
3
pageCount
3
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
177.8
height
72.4
dimensionsRaw
H: 70 x W: 28 1/2 in. (177.8 x 72.39 cm)
Source extras
cul
Inca
med
camelid fibers
creator_ids
8560
collection_ids
AME
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
cd28df15c4df56da
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
fdbee713e79962b4
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
df5c468a0c8781d5
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no