Collection Online as of June 9, 2023

Loincloth

1425–1500 (radiocarbon date, 92.3% probability)

Part of a set. See all set records

Peru, North Coast, Chimú style, 1200-1460s

Cotton; plain weave, brocaded and complex alternating gauze with 5 shots of plain weave between gauze shots

Overall: 151.1 x 57.2 cm (59 1/2 x 22 1/2 in.); Mounted: 167.6 x 71.1 cm (66 x 28 in.)

Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund 2005.5.2

Location

232 Andean

Fun Fact

This loincloth is huge!

Description

Loincloths were basic men’s wear in ancient Peru. But the extraordinary size of some examples—this one is about eight feet long, unfolded—makes it difficult to know how they were worn, except that they were tied around the waist with the decorated panels hanging at the front and back of the body. The appearance may have been that of a billowing skirt.

Citations

Rowe, Ann Pollard, and John P. O'Neill. Costumes & featherwork of the Lords of Chimor: textiles from Peru's north coast. 1984.

Sims, Lowery Stokes. The persistence of geometry: form, content, and culture in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2006. p. 48 & 116

Exhibition history

The Ancient Americas- Art From Sacred Landscapes, The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, (October 10, 1992- January 3, 1993); The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX, (February- April 18, 1993); The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA, (June 6- August 15, 1993).

The Persistence of Geometry: Form, Content and Culture in the Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA), Cleveland, OH (June 9-August 20, 2006).

Gallery 232- Andean Textile Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27, 2014-July 27, 2015).

Ancient Andean Textiles (Gallery 232 rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (December 9, 2022-December 3, 2023).