Magic Feathers

Magic Feathers: Textile Art from Ancient Peru explores the extraordinary feather textiles and three-dimensional feather objects created for the elite of the ancient Andean world, spanning 500 BC to 1550 AD. Author James W. Reid, an internationally recognised scholar of ancient American textile art, examines the featherwork-producing cultures of ancient Peru and the geography of the region. Reid explains how these magnificent objects were made, from the sourcing of feathers to their construction, as well as the meaning behind their motifs and designs, shedding light on the religious, political and social roles they played in ancient Peruvian life. An additional essay by ornithologist and illustrator Dr John P. O’Neill studies the birds of the Andes and Amazonia whose feathers were used to create these remarkable pieces.