ABSTRACT

Through a richly detailed examination of the practices of spinning yarn from the fleece of llamas and alpacas, Earth, Water, Fleece and Fabric explores the relationship that herders of the present and of the past have maintained with their herd animals in the Andes. Dransart juxtaposes an ethnography of an Aymara herding community, based on more than ten years fieldwork in Isluga in the Chilean highlands, with archaeological material from excavations in the Atacama desert.
Impeccably researched, this book is the first systematic study to set the material culture of pastoral communities against an understanding of the long-term effects of herding practices.

chapter 1|14 pages

Threads Through Time

chapter 3|35 pages

Caring for Herd Animals in Isluga

chapter 4|19 pages

Flowers of the Herds

The Wayñu Ceremony in Isluga

chapter 5|26 pages

The Transformation of Fleece Into Yarn

chapter 8|35 pages

The Yarns and Fabrics of Tulan Societies

chapter 9|10 pages

Conclusions

Earth, Water, Fleece and Fabric