2017.193
Object Title
Sleeved Tunic
Measurements
L 40.5 x W 127.5 cm (16 x 50 in)
Creation Date
probably AD 1470-1532
Credit Line
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 2017.193
Museum Name
Culture
Country of Origin
Object Type
Materials / Techniques
Museum's Definition of Antiquity
1970
Provenance Information
probably Alan Lapiner, New York City, before 1970; Justin Kerr, New York City, probably before 1970
Exhibition Information
None
Publication Information
None
Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970
Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970
Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above
Justin Kerr, a professional photographer and the immediate past owner, has confirmed the tunic was in his collection by at least 1975, when he and his late wife moved from one home to another, but he does not recall when or from whom he acquired it. He further confirms that Brigga (Brigitte) Lapiner, deceased, mounted the tunic; that in the 1960s he occasionally worked with Mrs. Lapiner’s husband, Alan Lapiner, a well-known Pre-Columbian dealer who died on February 3, 1975; and that during this period he acquired several objects from Mr. Lapiner. According to Mr. Kerr, there are only two people still alive who might recall having seen the tunic at his home in the early days. Both state that the tunic was displayed at the Kerr residence for many years but they do not remember the dates on which they first saw it. One adds that, according to his memory, he saw the tunic in Mr. Lapiner’s gallery in the late 1960s and that Mrs. Lapiner had stopped treating textiles in about 1970 in order to care for the Lapiners’ children. Taken together, these statements suggest that Mr. Kerr obtained the tunic before 1970 from Mr. Lapiner.
Ancient Andean weavers created one of the world’s most distinguished textile traditions, and the Chancay corpus forms an important chapter in that history. The museum’s exhibition-worthy Chancay holdings comprise only one other garment—a tie-dyed head cloth made of plain weave. This fine tunic, woven in the tapestry technique, will allow the museum to present to the public a more complete picture of Chancay garment types, weaving structures, and imagery. It also instantiates a major event in ancient Andean history since it represents a recently defined subtype that probably post-dates the Inca conquest of Chancay territory.
Ancient Andean weavers created one of the world’s most distinguished textile traditions, and the Chancay corpus forms an important chapter in that history. The museum’s exhibition-worthy Chancay holdings comprise only one other garment—a tie-dyed head cloth made of plain weave. This fine tunic, woven in the tapestry technique, will allow the museum to present to the public a more complete picture of Chancay garment types, weaving structures, and imagery. It also instantiates a major event in ancient Andean history since it represents a recently defined subtype that probably post-dates the Inca conquest of Chancay territory.