Page 524 - Art In The Age Of Exploration (Great Section on Chinese Art Ming Dynasty)

state invested enormous resources in the pro-
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duction of cloth. Part of the interest in cloth
production by the state was related to the
economic and symbolic value of textiles to
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the user, but it was also related to the state's
interest in creating and controlling a series of
essential signs and symbols.
The artistic peak in Andean ceramics was
reached centuries before the Inka with the
achievements of Chavin, Moche, Nazca, and
Wari potters. The tendency toward standardiza-
tion already suggested in some of the earlier
styles became especially pronounced in Inka
pottery. Technical standards were high, and the
clean geometric polychrome designs, though
rather limited in range, are vibrant and appeal-
ing. Modeled ornaments frequently depict the
heads of pumas; the handles on plates often
take the form of the head of a bird. Rare pieces
model the human form.
The role of pottery in the material culture of
the state was relatively narrow. Of course its
primary use was in the preparation, serving,
and storage of food and drink. The brewing and
fig. i. An early Inka ruler holding in his left hand fig. 2. The "administrator of provinces" holding storage of maize beer required great quantities
what was probably a padded cloth shield. From quipus, stringed devices that were knotted in a deci- of jars. Pottery was also used as containers for
Guaman Poma de Ayala, El Primer Nueva coronica mal system and used in record keeping. From offerings of food and was common as grave fur-
y Buen Gobierno (cat. 441). The Royal Library, Guaman Poma de Ayala, El Primer Nueva coronica niture. Unlike some earlier Andean cultures, the
Copenhagen y Buen Gobierno (cat. 441). The Royal Library,
Copenhagen Inka do not appear to have broken pottery cere-
monially as part of religious rites. The materials
honored by being sacrificed were mainly textiles. 28
Ceramics in standardized Inka styles are
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parrot feathers and decorated with gold and men (cats. 449-453). The standardization of found mainly in Cuzco and the centers built by
silver plaques. Many Indians carried him up design on these garments extends also to some the Inka along their road system. They are
high on their shoulders, and after this came technical features. 25 It seems probable that the sometimes mixed with local styles in non-Inka
two other litters and two hammocks in which designs of these tunics were related to the status sites that were of special political importance to
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two other important people rode. Then many of the wearers and, in some cases, to the situa- the Inka. The furnishing of state centers far
groups of people entered with gold and silver tions in which they were worn. This would be from Cuzco with pottery in the style of the
crowns. As soon as the first entered the consistent with the use of visual insignia of capital symbolically underscored the source of
plaza, they went to the side and made room group membership as one of the essential func- the food, drink, and hospitality prepared and
for the others. Upon arriving in the middle of tions of garments. The use of bright and highly served there.
the plaza, Atawalpa make a sign for silence. 22 visible designs would tell knowledgeable Precious metals, specifically gold, were of
observers at a glance the ethnic identity and primary interest to the invading Spanish. For
The exact meanings of the designs on Inka other essential social and political characteristics the Inka, gold and silver had not become the
textiles will probably never be deciphered. His- of the people they encountered. It would also universal measure of value that they had in
torical knowledge is scant because the early allow them to quickly assess the composition of Europe. The Inka had nevertheless accumulated
Europeans were more concerned with subjugat- a large group, such as the functionaries and offi- vast quantities of precious metals and used
ing the New World and taking advantage of its cials Jerez saw accompanying Atawalpa. This them lavishly. The temple of the sun in Cuzco
great wealth than they were with recording the capacity to communicate social information had walls sheathed in gold and a garden planted
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details of the cultures that had accumulated rapidly was essential, given the variety of the with golden plants. Unfortunately, Spanish
such riches. A few investigators have claimed components of the empire. greed and insensitivity assigned most of these
that the meanings of some of the designs on The textiles that appear so starkly modern fabulous objects to the melting pots. One need
Inka cloth are so specific as to make them signs should be thought of in their Inka contexts. name only a few of the objects from the long
in what was essentially a form of writing. 23 They were garments moving from place to place lists of destroyed treasure to get a notion of the
Most, however, do not believe that the system as the people who wore them moved, helping inconceivable loss:
of signs was sufficiently complete or manipula- define the status and positions of their wearers
ble to approach writing in the sense of a system and determining the reactions of others toward A golden sheep [llama or alpaca], assessed at
of codes for replicating spoken language. them. By making these identifications possible, i/cts., weighing one hundred and eleven
There is, nevertheless, considerable standardi- textiles were vital to the way the empire was marks, five ounces [about fifty-five pounds]
zation, particularly of unqo, the tunics worn by held together and made to function. The Inka

THE AMERICAS 523