Two fragments from a Paracas mantle woven in red and brown with skeletal human figures holding fans or tumi knives. Larger fragment with face is "a"; smaller fragment with full figure is "b".

• Label

  The backward-bent pose of this skeletal figure with long, streaming hair and a fan or knife in its hand is associated with sacrificial victims and death. At the throat, a square-shaped wound suggests a decapitation. Alternatively, the figure has been interpreted as the seminal being of a mythic transformation sequence in which supernatural beings evolve into more complex, composite figures such as the Plant Beings seen nearby.<br /> <br /> <br /> La pose torcida hacia atr&aacute;s de esta figura esquel&eacute;tica con largo pelo flotante y un abanico o cuchillo en su mano est&aacute; asociada a las v&iacute;ctimas de sacrificio y a la muerte. En la garganta, una herida cuadrada sugiere decapitaci&oacute;n. Alternativamente, esta figura ha sido interpretada como el ser seminal de una transformaci&oacute;n secuencial en la que seres sobrenaturales se convierten en figuras compuestas m&aacute;s complejas, como los Seres Vegetales que se ven cerca.<br />

• Credit Line

  A. Augustus Healy Fund

---

• Type of Item textile fragment, figure
• Culture Paracas
• Material cotton, camelid fiber

---

---

---

• Creation Date between 101 BCE and 1

---

• Classification Textile