Peru, Timoteo Ccarita Sacaca, TR1 Pasadizo (Table runner)

Size: 226 x 50 cm

Weight: 750 grams

Takes 30 days to make.

Table runners are used for rituals.

The origin dates from the pre-Inca period in the district of Pitumarca. It has been never considered an art, but rather a means of communication through iconography.

An “Aclla Inka”, Teresa Huamantiklla, started the traditional textile of Pitumarca. She is mythically known as the Daughter of the Apu Ausangate, the most impressive mountain of Cusco.

The iconographies are interpretations of the Andean cosmovision: from the observation of the stars, the traditions and customs related to the rituals and energetic synchronization of spirits or matters such as Apu (mountains), pachamama (mother cosmos), teqsy muyo (mother earth), auquis (spirits), qhaha (reactoneary energies) volcanoes, the sun, earthquakes, winds, energy vibrations, etc.

The traditional weaving in Pitumarca has mantained the original designs and symbolism for thousands of years. The symbols are profound mysteries embodied ethnographically in each ancestral textile. The tradition has been maintained thanks to the wise people. The techniques are transmitted from mother to daughter with the contributions of Timoteo, in Pitumarca. The associations of weavers will mantain the tradition in the future.

The threads are made with natural wool which is sourced locally. The animals (alpaca, sheep and vicuña) are grown by the same community or other neighboring communities.

The dyes are also natural. They are locally sourced, except for the indigo color. All dyes come from natural plants, minerals or insects.

Weaving is made by a with a back strap loom. The whole handmade process involves hundreds of members of the community, mostly women, from shearing the alpacas, spinning the yarn or dyeing the wool. It's a time consuming technique. The time depends on the size, from 2 weeks the small ones until 6 months the big ones.