Half of a Tabard
1400-1532
Medium
Cotton, plain weave, with double warps and single wefts; embellished with feathers (likely from great or snowy egrets, Muscovy ducks,Chilean flamigos, and macaws) knotted and attached with cotton in back stitches
Dimensions
88.9 × 70.2 cm (35 × 27 5/8 in.)
Classification
featherwork
Department
Textiles
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
85508
About the Artist
Chimú
The Chimú, a preeminent pre-Columbian culture of Peru's northern coast, flourished from approximately 900 to 1470 CE as the Kingdom of Chimor, emerging in the wake of the Moche civilization's decline and incorporating influences from the Sican, Wari, and Cajamarca cultures. Centered in the vast adobe metropolis of Chan Chan—the largest city in the Americas before the Inca, housing up to 60,000 peo...