September 3 – October 24, 2010

Textiles played an important role in Andean society. Textile arts were extremely labor intensive and required extraordinary skill. A single tunic might be made from 6 to 9 miles of different colored thread. Textiles were valued more than gold or silver, and signified the wearer's high social status and political power.   The Incas gave textiles as the highest form of tribute.  Sacred fabrics were also for important persons who were buried and wrapped in elaborately woven and embroidered mummy bundles and were meant to accompany the wearer to the next world. Textiles, from their fragile nature, are often not available for examination and study.  This rare look at such fragile and delicate materials opens up a door to the Andean society that most people do not have the chance to see.