The evolution and changes of the Moche Textile Style: what does it tell us about Northern Textile Production?

by

María Jesús JimÈnez Díaz

 

In the past decades various studies have reported a considerable number of Moche textiles from several sites along the Peruvian coast, especially from the North Coast area. These textiles show certain characteristics that clearly define the Moche Textile Style. Based on a sample of more than 370 textiles from published sources and from my own analysis of the textiles excavated from the early Moche site of Dos Cabezas,  I have been able to identify many of these traits. The Moche Textile Style is set apart by a series of associated traits that consist of 1) the predominance of cotton threads "S" spun, 2)  the types of textile techniques employed (such us twill weave or double cloth), 3)  the morphology of the different garments that were produced and, 4) the iconographic and stylistic canons.

 

At the same time, this sample clearly shows the evolution of the Moche Textile Style through time, and especially the important transformations that occurred  during the Middle Horizon. This period was one of the most important periods of the pre-Hispanic era due to the relevant changes that occurred in the different regions of the Central Andes. These changes clearly affected the Moche Textile Style: for example, slit tapestry became one of the most common techniques in textiles while those using twill weave all but disappeared.

 

From a broader perspective, the evolution and transformations of Moche Textile Style help us to approximate the Northern Textile Production that seems to be characterized by several traits which were consistent through the millenia. Some of them, such as the importance of cotton "S" spun threads, appear in the Moche Style, as an expression of these Northern cultural preferences expressed through textiles.

 

María Jesús JimÈnez is a Ph. D. Candidate in the Department of American Anthropology of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. The Pre-Columbian Textile Collection in the Museo de AmÈrica de Madrid is the subject of her dissertation. Her research is also centered on pre-Hispanic textiles from the north coast of Peru, where she has been working as the textile specialist in several archaeological projects, analyzing textiles ranging from Moche to Chimú-Inca in style. A main point of her studies concerns the technical features that characterize the Northern Textile Production as an expression of cultural identity. She has published several works on Moche textiles from the site of Dos Cabezas, on Chimú/Chimú-Inca textiles from Farfán and Cabur, and on a selection of related textiles in the Museo de AmÈrica. From 1997 to 1999 she was a fellow at the Textile Museum of the Universidad Complutense, developing textile conservation. She also has been working as a textile curator and restorer in the Army Museum in Madrid (2000-2002). She is currently carrying out research and cataloguing of the Textile Collection in the Museo de AmÈrica de Madrid and is the textile specialist of the Farfan Archaeological Project, directed by Dr. Carol Mackey (California State University at Northridge).