The techniques used for Matsigenka textile products are reserved for women only and are transmitted from one generation to the other within the same family.
Their iconography is woven into geometric designs whose patterns are woven depending on the story being told, using a base of four colours: white, cream, brown and pink; the pigments are derived from plants and tree barks. Their designs can often represent whether the person is married or single, to personality features or individual tastes. For small products such as bracelets, wooden hand looms are used, while for larger pieces like cushmas or handbags, back strap looms are utilized.
Dimensions (approximate): 17cm circumference x 3cm width, 7cm fringe (adjustable)
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The Matsigenka are one of numerous ethnic groups culturally alive in the Peruvian Amazon and as for millennia they are connected to nature through their rainforest home, producing numerous artifacts from locally sourced materials.
Jempos are a common element used among Matsigenka people to carry any kind of object or material. They are made from a vegetable fibre called cetico. The material is obtained from the bark of the tree with the same name, the cetico. This bark is softened in the water to extract from its finer fibres. Later, the fibres are twisted together to obtain the fine thread with which the jempos are woven by hand.
In their designs, they also create patterns by adding the colour purple, which they obtain by rubbing the yarn with sanipanga leaves.
