Uru-Chipaya Coiled Quinoa Basket - 3" x 13" x 15"

A finely constructed coiled basket made by the Uru-Chipaya people of the Bolivian altiplano, woven from bundled aquatic rushes and secured with narrow strips of leather. The shallow circular form is built outward in a continuous spiral, with the darker leather stitching creating a strong radiating pattern across the pale rush foundation. The result is both highly functional and visually graphic, the structure of the basket itself becoming its decoration. Baskets of this type were traditionally used in the handling and transport of quinoa, an essential crop of the high Andean plateau. The use of locally gathered rushes and leather reflects the resourcefulness of Uru-Chipaya material culture and a basketry tradition closely adapted to the austere landscape of Oruro. This example comes from a documented group collected in Sabaya Province and retains the irregularities, wear, and subtle tonal variation of a utilitarian object made for daily use. Size: 3" x 13" x15" [8cm x 33cm x 38cm] Age: Early 20th Century Origin: Sabaya Province, Department of Oruro, Bolivia Material: Local aquatic rushes and leather strips Condition: Very good OB098