Skirt (Falda)

ClassificationsClothing and Adornments-principal attire (lower body)

Culture Shipibo-Conibo

Datemid to late 20th Century

Made AtUcayali Department, Peru, South America

MediumCotton

Dimensions27 × 57 in. (68.6 × 144.8 cm)

Credit LineAnonymous Gift

Object number2016.15.70

DescriptionThis Shipibo-Conibo skirt bears the kené design that appears almost universally on Shipibo textiles. The winding lines of the kené are said to represent many things: the patterns of rivers, the meandering movements of the snake god Ronin, metaphorical life paths, literal roads, and so on. In a Shipibo community, the shaman is responsible for witnessing new designs for clothes (usually through the aid of ayahuasca) and passing them on to the women who make textiles. Kené are symbols of power and protection and are said to be the visualization of invisible patterns that cover the world.

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