Woven textile with crab and bird design, from grave in cemetery

This fringed cloth, made of finely woven wool, was among the garments worn by a 'mummy bundle' burial in the huge cemetery at Ancon in Peru. The design and colour would have been symbolically important. Hot, dry conditions have preserved it.

Woven textile in red and cream wool, featuring a panel with crab motifs edged by a Greek key-like design. Below this, the fabric has been woven as thin strips to make a decorative fringe, with cat and angular motifs.

Before the Spanish conquered Peru, people buried their dead in underground graves. Bodies were placed inside 'mummy bundles', and propped upright to resemble living, sitting people. Grave goods reflected their gender and status.

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