Textile Fragment with Embroidered Motif of Hummingbirds (Primary Title)
Textile Fragment with Embroidered Motif of Parrots and Figures (Former Title)
Unknown (Artist)
This fragment was originally the border of a large textile. Borders were attached to textiles to provide additional areas to display important symbolism. Made with a Nazca embroidery needle technique called cross-knit looping, the three-dimensional figure can be viewed from the front or the back. Possibly the double-sided nature of this technique also communicated a sense of duality or contrast between two concepts, such as light and dark.
Depicted on this border is a series of hummingbirds that collect nectar from several types of flowers. Within Andean culture, hummingbirds were respected for their high-speed flight, their association with flowers, and their aggressive behavior.
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