Textile Fragment

c. 50–650 CE
Overall: 39.4 x 27.9 cm (15 1/2 x 11 in.)
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Location: not on view

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This fragment is a rare survivor of floods that destroyed much of the Moche textile record.

Description

This fragment, one of several in the collection, is a rare survivor of catastrophic rains that destroyed much of the Moche textile legacy and may have helped to bring about the decline of Moche culture. It depicts a serpent and a snail beneath a hovering raptorial bird—perhaps a snail kite, a type of hawk named after its favored food. The size of the motifs implies that the original textile was large; a mantle (a shawl-like garment) or a hanging are among the possibilities.
Textile Fragment

Textile Fragment

c. 50–650 CE

Peru, Moche, north coast

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