Totonicapán corte (wrap skirt).

This circa-1980 corte was hand woven on a foot treadle loom in one wide and one narrow matching cotton panels. The very fine ikat patterns in this corte are in weft stripes and utilize indigo dye. Ikat is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that employs a resist dying process similar to tie-dye, except that different combinations of threads are dyed before they are woven. These cortes are worn widely and are considered generic instead of village specific. Ikat skirts similar to this are woven throughout the area between Quetzaltenango and Totonicapán. The specific provenance given is according to information received from the vendor. This outstanding example is in very good condition. Typically, we sell cortes for yardage. The top photograph shows only half of the material as it is sown together in one large loop by joining the warp ends. It was acquired from Sra. Petronila Mendez Bocó at the Mercado des Artesanos in Antigua. Weft 104 x Warp 390 cm. (17-51) $ 100. OBO