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

149
Panel from a Tunic
Transforming Staff-Bearers
Wari culture
AD 600-900
Camelid wool; interlocking tapestry weave,
selvedged on one side
13" x 13¼"
A
Stylized vilca
B
San Pedro Cactus?
C
Stylized skull
Symmetrically aligned and proportionally matched, the kneebending
staff-bearers are depicted facing the same direction
within this broad column of design. More typically, such figures
twist in opposite directions and rhythmically contract and
expand in scale.
The clarity of the figuration benefits from the black background,
ample negative space and sharply defined line. The figures
are twins in several respects, their mutuality underscored by
visual resonances between them, and their complementarity
indicated by key symbolic differences.
Shamanistic allusions to ritual death and transfiguration are
explicit, such as the rib cages starkly exposed in the skeletal
chests. Versions of this motif are found in many portrayals of
the Wari staff-bearer, although in most instances the element is
so altered or schematic as to resemble an ornamental collar or
the condor’s neck ruff. In this context, however, this archetypal
symbol of death and rebirth "from the bones" not only fits
the image of the trancing, contorted character, it also visibly
echoes the emblem adorning one of the staffs (top). That
distinctive botanical motif denotes the hallucinogenic powder
vilca, obtained from Anadenanthera colubrina (detail A). The
motif is also seen in the headdresses of both personae.
The second staff-bearer (bottom) brandishes a staff topped
with a San Pedro cactus finial (detail B). The juxtaposition of
these two stylized motifs, which allude to the sacred plants of
Andean ritualism, reinforces the notion that the staffs are not
solely insignia of power or authority, as they are most often
understood to be, but are indeed signifiers of transcendental
states or dimensions.
The shaft of this emblem is typically patterned with concentric
squares or an undulating or scalloped line, which also decorate
different parts of the staff-bearer’s attire. Although the same
designs are replicated in numerous extant tunics, the elements
are seemingly interchangeable and do not appear to be
associated with any specific type of figure.
Although Wari tunic iconography was greatly standardized, the
weavers selected their details from a flexible store of images
and symbols. Anomalous, idiosyncratic and singular choices
abound. And while many motifs are ostensibly alike, the
body of Wari imagery suggests that virtually imperceptible
modifications of line or shape sparked different connotations.
The potential for the range of meaning is exemplified, for
example, by the pronged circular element set behind the rear
foot (detail C). A related motif is commonly used to represent
the magic cactus. But in this composition, it echoes the disc
attached to the staff-bearer's elbow, which derives in turn from
a trophy head suspended from the same spot on the paramount
Cosmic Deity portrayed on Tiwanaku’s Sun Gateway. The
element also resembles the skull motifs (some with severed
arteries or hair tresses) seen in a distinctive type of Wari tunic
(see cat. 164). The icon is rendered with various degrees of
realism, but at its most stylized, is little more than an indented
block with an enlarged cyclopean eye and pendant hair. Based
on those comparisons, it is likely that this element represents a
ritual head as well.
Note: The panel preserves the abbreviated edge patterning and the tubular
finish along the side seam.