Shamans, Supernaturals & Animal Spirits: Mythic Figures From the Ancient Andes

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Border from a Tunic
Mythical Creature (Llama/Deer/Frog)
Moche-Wari culture, Huarmey Valley
AD 750-1000
Cotton, camelid wool; interlocking and
slit tapestry weave
2¾" x 34½"
If ever there was a compressed symbolic narrative or an
improbable composite animal in Andean iconography, this
antlered, sprouting, indescribable creature exemplifies it. The
design layout, juxtaposing a single, discrete figure with an area
of solid-colored slit tapestry weave conforms to Huarmey
styles. But the figure has little precedent and is difficult to
decode.
The traits of several different animals, and multiple vantage
points, are fused into an intricate, surreal form. The core figure
has the sinuous, attenuated form of a spider monkey with a
spiraling tail and many rootlike limbs, while the antlered head
may allude to a deer or llama. Its extended tongue is continuous
with the spinal column, while its haunches are rendered like
those of a squatting toad or frog.
The organic character of the design, the water symbolism and
the fact that in Moche iconography budding antlers on deer
were apparently equated with budding leaves cohere into an
icon that may celebrate seasonal fecundity and growth.
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