Hair Tie Item Number: 3486/19 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
Wasa watana (hair tie). A braided hair tie made in the combined techniques of oblique interlacing (dark threads) and oblique twining (mainly pink and orange). Each end of the hair tie has 3 tassels made of 3 bands. Most of the added bands intersect by passing through the threads of the main band, however 2 of the 6 tassels have folded bands that are sewn on.
Hair ties are worn by highland women of Peru and Bolivia as adornments but are also useful for keeping their long braids joined together on their back and out of their way while doing other tasks. In the Cusco area, they are called “wasa watana” (Quechua), which means a narrow woven band with other bands woven through it. The distinctive feature of woven wasa watana is the addition of intersecting warp bands near both ends, which are also woven. The intersecting bands produce tassel-like endings with fringes. The most common design woven into the narrow bands is nested diamonds; other patterns based on triangles or zigzags are also used. The main band bridges woman’s hair braids and sections of it are included in the braids, with the tassels extending from the ends of their braids. Types vary in Peru and Bolivia and several different techniques (weaving, braiding, wrapping, felting, embroidery) are used to make them.
Bought by the donor in 1982 in a Cusco shop. The donor was told it was from a place named Ampare, but the location of this community is unknown. The technique is different from the hair ties worn in the Cusco and Urubamba Valley areas, so it may originate from further south, possibly around Lake Titicaca?