VintageGriffin.com

It is not only the Occident that possesses a textile and costume history. Every continent (excepting Antarctica) has a long tradition of people wearing garments. The weaving tradition in Peru goes back 2,000 years and was a rich part of Incan culture. The area around the ancient Incan capital at Machu Picchu has a long history of intensely intricate weaving techniques, and every village had (and still has) its own weaving traditions and patterns. This beautiful, beautiful wrap from Peruvian Connection is based on a traditional regional textile/garment called a "manta," and it brings that rich cultural tradition to the modern woman, who need not be Incan to be flattered by it.

A manta is a traditional Peruvian garment that is also put to use in other ways: carrying firewood, carrying children, setting it out as a mat upon which a guest might sit. Particularly nice examples are prized by the families who own them. Ancient Peruvians (as well as those of today) made good use of the llama, a native animal that produced fine, warm wool. Patterns in mantas are complex, and often involve many different weaving styles. The designs can be either abstract or symbolic, and a manta may incorporate both kinds.

The overall design of a manta may include areas of intense pattern contrasted against areas of solid pattern. Traditionally, the solid area has been referred to by weaves as "the pampas," a word which primarily means a "vast stretch of unplanted land" in Quechua. Textile historians have theorized that the patterns on mantas are stylized representations of land patterns.




Where can I find this?

http://www.peruvianconnection.com