Detail of a woven fabric in native style.

A Palm Sunday ring made of palm-like fiber.

A bracelet of crab claws found in a trash pile near the church.

Detail of a design element on a prehispanic-style textile.

Glass beads still strung on original thread from an occupation floor in Unit 24.

Andean textiles are well known for the great diversity of the techniques by which they were made, the symbolism they held, and the great importance Andean people gave to them. While other cultures also valued cloth, the great preservative qualities of the Peruvian coastal desert offers a great variety of ancient examples of clothing and other textiles for researchers to study.

We have found many examples of clothing in our work and these discoveries are among our most fascinating finds because they exhibit the continuation of the separate textile traditions of the Andes and Europe while at the same time showing how the two influenced each other. These include native-style tunics and mantles as well as examples of European clothing. Native peoples continued to weave textiles using older designs, such as stylized birds and fish; presumably these were not seen as a threat or they were tolerated by the Spanish.

One textile that clearly shows a mix of traditions is a large fragment of painted cloth with a blue glass bead sewn onto it. While the bead clearly shows European influence, the painted cross motifs may be Christian influences or may not since crosses were also Andean motifs. Issues such as this one are part of our continuing investigations and include not only stylistic changes but also the introduction or modification of technical aspects of cloth production and weaving.

Other examples of the introduction of European textile traditions we have noted include the discovery of felt, silk, and linen fabrics. To the best of our knowledge, these are the earliest known examples of these materials in the New World. So too, we found examples of knitting, a technique which was introduced by Europeans; we have therefore discovered the earliest New World examples of stockings (or gaiters).

In addition to textiles we have found several examples of sandals and two examples of leather shoes. The latter conform to European styles worn in the late sixteenth century.

A Venetian bead found in an offering in Unit 19.

Fragment of a bead associated with a burial under the church nave (fragment approx. 2 cm. long).

A shawl-like garment in Spanish style.