Border Fragment

Textiles

100 B.C./A.D. 200

Paracas
South coast, Peru

The distinctive stylized figure depicted on this fragment has wide eyes and an upturned mouth, with streamers or appendages trailing from its body. Scholars have named this figure the “oculate being” because of its wide eyes. However, it remains a matter of debate whether the figure represents a particular supernatural entity or a stylized figural representation.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Textiles

Culture: Paracas
Title: Border Fragment
Place: Peru (Object made in)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: Made 100 BCE–200 CE
Medium: Cotton, plain weave; embroidered with wool (camelid) in stem stitches
Dimensions: 39.4 × 20.3 cm (15 1/2 × 8 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Alan R. Sawyer
Reference Number: 1958.751
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/9386/manifest.json

Art Institute of Chicago, Super/Natural: Textiles of the Andes, Feb. 23-June 16, 2019, no cat.

Alan R. Sawyer, Homewood, Ill., by Dec. 1958 [Incoming receipt RX704 dated 12/22/1958 in curatorial file]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1958.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.