Knitted Mask - Waq'ollo - Rainbow Stripe
- txh0049-Turquoise
- Product Size: 13" L x 9.5" W
$13.00
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0% ($-13.00)
Fair Trade
Hand Made
Made in Peru, this striped knitted face mask with contrasting eyebrows and face is a perfect blend of tradition and fashion.
It comes in various styles, including rainbow stripes or a combination of solid colors and thin rainbow stripes. The mask is designed to be pulled over the head and features openings for the eyes, nose, and mouth. This type of mask is called a "waq'ollos" in Quechua, a local dialect in Peru. It is traditionally worn during the Peruvian Festival of Qoyllur Riti, also known as the "Lord of the Snow Star" ceremonies. It can also be worn on the slopes or in the snow.
The mask measures 13 inches long by 9.5 inches wide when laid flat, and is designed to fit most faces.
Dimensions
Product Origin
- Sacred Valley Textiles
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Textile systems developed in Peru over the millennia represent a treasury of techniques rare in the world. Most remain unknown outside of Peru. They are passed on, not by writing, but by the Andean process of person-to-person communication, by watching and practicing. Peruvian weaving is a ritual activity with many layers of meaning.
Peruvian textiles honor Pachamama, Mother Earth. They express appreciation for the process of growth and generation and the concept of relatedness to other species and the natural world. Many people find inspiration in the ideas of indigenous people who developed systems of survival in this hemisphere before the time of Columbus. Icons and symbols expressed in the arts that inspire a respect for the earth can help to keep alive our efforts at preservation and conservation. Source: Center for Traditional Textiles in Cusco
More info
Qoyllur Rit’i, the annual sacred festival held in the high Andes Mountains of Peru at the foot of Mt. Ausangate, in the Valley of Sinakara, is probably the most important festival of the year. It combines a dangerous moonlit trek to what remains of a melting glacier in an ancient Andean ritual of renewal by sacred Apu waters with the Roman Catholic ritual of the Mass, celebrating the Lord of the Snow Star. The fiesta runs three days and nights without pause. It is an exhausting cacophony of noise, a riot of costume, and a spectacle of movement. Part of the festivities include dancing and dressing up as various mythological or historical figures each wearing their uniquely identified costumes. One of these groups, the Qollas, dress in this mask with a hat, a woven sling, and llama skin and represent the Aymara residents of the Altiplano region of the Andes mountains. Another group, called the Ukukus, or bears, also wear this type of mask.
