Living with the Dead: Ancestor Worship at Pachacamac

Introduction [Anastasia]

Death is perhaps one of the few universal phenomena in human life. What death itself means and how the dead are treated are much more divisive. Although everyone can agree that death occurs when the heart expires, what happens to the body and spirit - if one believes that a spirit exists - is highly controversial. The enigmatic question of what exists after death still has a variety of answers and no universal conclusions. The conclusions that cultural groups draw and their subsequent treatment of their dead reveals the basis of their community.

For example, in a community that practices Ancestor Worship, the living not only revere the dead, but rely on them to ensure their continued survival and prosperity. Ancestors may be deceased honored blood relatives, relatives by familial association, or community members depending on the practitioners. Veneration may include ritual preparation and disposition of the body, offerings of food, items, or petitions to the deceased, and other ritual traditions to remember and honor the deceased. Rather than being barred from this world or rendered inert, the deceased not only remain a part of the living but maintain great power and respect. Spaces marked to commemorate their death such as grave sites would be carefully maintained. Practitioners would seek guidance and approval from the ancestors for both mundane and crucial decisions. Rather than dispose of the body and sever relationships with the deceased, the living would continue to incorporate the dead into their communities. In the practice of ancestor worship, death is truly considered a part of life.

In Andean communities past and present, the dead continue to involve themselves in the lives of the living. Rather than be severed from this world they continue to maintain their agency. Not only may they own land, but also enable the continuation of their familial line from beyond the grave. The dead are mummified, wrapped, adorned, and placed with the ancestors, creating a physical manifestation of the link from generation to generation and from humanity to the natural world. They bring blessings or curses upon their descendants, depending on their treatment over time. The living continue to care for them, offering them food and drink and updating their clothing with elaborate textiles. We sought to capture his sense of agency of the dead and continued involvement of the living in our project.

Definitions

For the purposes of this paper, “mummy” will refer to mummified human remains while “bundle” will refer to the funerary assemblage of human remains, textiles, funerary objects, and other components.

The Ceremonial Center of Pachacamac [Kelcey]

Between 1895 to 1898, German-born archaeologist Max Uhle excavated Pachacamac on behalf of the Penn Museum. He wanted to understand the "character and age" of Pachacamac and uncover the meaning of the site for Peruvian culture with a focus on time (Uhle:1903). In carefully excavating the site, he made observations that continue to influence how we today think about Pachacamac and how archaeologists study Peruvian culture. Max Uhle found periods of culture, centuries of history, beneath the ruins of the Inca city.

Because of Max Uhle's work, we know that Pachacamac, situated on the coast of Peru, is a large archaeological site with deep roots in pre-Columbian Andean history. The archeological record for Pachacamac dates to the 5th century, revealing continued use by civilizations that preceded the Spanish conquistador's arrival 1533 and the Inca rule established in 1465. For centuries, Pachacamac was used for social and religious rituals attracting pilgrims from along the coast. The gathering of coastal people at the site made it the place for cultural exchange for hundreds of years (Eeckhout 2013). As the centuries passed, constructed temples transferred from civilization to civilization. The temples, buildings, and practices underwent modifications with time; however, they did not lose their significance for the people who worshiped at the site.

When the Inca conquered the area in 1465, the site transitioned into a new era as primary worship and political center for the Inca Empire (Fleming 1986:151-152). Architectural modifications and new edifices mark the change from Ychsma to Inca controlled Pachacamac. The Incas remodeled the site constructing new structures that focused on the oracle and the official Sun religion of the Inca. The Inca built religious-cultural monuments such as the Sun Temple, Mamaconas Complex, Pilgrim's Plaza, and the Governor's Palace. They also rearranged access in and out of the ceremonial center to better and manage, feed, and house the visiting pilgrims. Buildings and spaces for political rituals such as banquets and religious rituals reinforced the authority of the Incas and the importance of Pachacamac as a Pan-Andean pilgrimage center (Fleming 1983:145; Eeckhout:2012; Uhle [1903] 1991).

The Sun Temple was a vital addition to the site. Built by the Inca shortly after 1465 to worship their deity Inti, the temple solidified the inclusion of the local deity Ychsma into the Inca pantheon. The Inca renamed Ychsma Pachacamac, and the Inti Temple and the new Temple of Pachacamac were focal points for Inca and Andean people to worship. Having expanded their empire throughout the Andean region, defeating rival ethnic groups and competing polities, the Inca coopted and appropriated the coastal peoples Ychsma deity into a single empire (Eeckhout 2013; Fleming:1983).

In 1896, when excavating a forecourt of the Painted Temple of Pachacamac (also called the New Temple of Pachacamac and Pachacamac Temple, Max Uhle found thousands of graves indicating the use of Pachacamac as a site for enshrining the dead for pre-Inca civilizations and well into the Inca age of rule. The cemetery was a stratum or layered tomb made out of mudbrick. Inside were bales or bundles wrapped with plain cloth but surrounded by high-quality textiles. The significance of the location of the burials cannot be overlooked because they add meaning that the architecture cannot. Close placement to the Pachacamac deity highlights the important status of those buried as well as the desire for the dead to receive via proximity protection after death (Fleming 1983: 147). Max Uhle also excavated thousands of burials throughout the site revealing that Pachacamac was not only a place to worship Andean deities and exchange cultural goods, but it was also a place to resituate the honored dead within Andean society and prepare them for an afterlife.

Andean Ancestor Worship [Kelcey]

Far from death being the end of life, Andean people saw death as a state of transition or transformation. Death was not the end but the continuation of life stages. These stages are where the individual moves from the mutable "soft, juicy, unformed, and fast-changing life states" to being "dryer, harder, more lasting states, dry husks, trees, old people, and finally mummies" (Salomon 1995: 328). From birth, to death, to commemoration as an ancestor through enshrinement as a mummy, the individual moved along a life process that transitioned them from the temporary state of soft and young to the enduring states of hard and old. More than a temporal progression where the individual grows from baby to senior, the hard aspects also reflect the enduring parts of the body, such as the skeleton and the hide (1995:329). The soft states are temporary, but after a process, the hard states can be preserved: they are mummified and wrapped, forming bundles that represent the personhood of the deceased. They also act as a token for communicating with the spirit of the individual that, upon death, returns to pacarina or the traditional place of origin or emergence.

Communication with the dead was a critical part of Andean society. They believed the dead to have an active relationship with the living, and they visited their ancestors, bringing them offerings seeking their counsel. This relationship was in-part founded on the understanding that the fortunes of the living were the result of the actions of the ancestors: what the ancestors did before they were ancestors and what they do as the deceased members of a community. Communication was also a way to extend and reassert the authority of the deceased upholding lineages and solving inheritance disputes. Upon enshrinement, when the spirit of the deceased returned to the family's "place of origin" or pacarina, the spirit rests waiting for descendants to call upon and consulted (Salomon 1995:322).

[Anastasia]

In Andean society, the dead were a source of social, cosmological, and political order. Llactas - ceremonial centers - at which several ayllus - ancestor cults -would convene housed the ancestors of each group, linking them together. These ayllus would often descend from the same common ancestor, who may be common or superhuman. Within ayllus, the dead often connected the living back to the huacas, or special humans descended from geological features or natural forces such as a mountain or the weather. These llactas would often be endogamous, insisting that descendants stay within the community (Salomon 1991:321). Ayllus may gain or lose influence depending on the family’s success. A prosperous family will draw greater devotees to their ancestors so that the devotees may also share in the ancestors’ blessings (1991:342). Factions of influence would form around these families. Through the ancestral line, the dead connected the living to both each other and to the world both cosmologically and politically.

In addition to providing this order, ancestors also provided the force needed to continue the lineage through their death. While the body mummifies, the spirit or “volatile part” leaves and must embark on a one year journey to its “place of origin,” upaimarca (Salomon 1991:341). There, the body is “replanted,” providing the family with fertility. In Andean society, Death begets life.

Preparation, Material Culture, and Enshrinement of the Andean Dead [Anastasia]

The living would need to repay the dead for their service. Thus, everyone was prepared and buried except for the destitute who could not afford burial (Fleming 1983:147). For men, after death came five intense days of mourning during which the lead women mourners redistributed foodstuffs such as hominy, toasted maize, chicha, and coca (Salomon 1991:329). People in attendance would also bring food for the dead and the mourners. Llamas would be sacrificed, their blood scattered on the deceased, their lungs used to divine whether the deceased had any lingering anger or sins, and the head would be served to the dead. The five days would end with ritual gambling and with one mourner taking the body to yarutini to watch for the spirit to leave the body (1991:330). Frank Salomon interprets this event as the woman watching for insects to emerge from the body to demonstrate that the spirit - or anyma to the Spanish - had begun its year long journey (1991:322). Scholars have yet to find evidence of any details concerning the mourning ritual for women (1991:329).

Women would handle the “soft” elements of the body before mummification and would have been responsible for the preparation of the body (Salomon 1991:331). Although one Spanish observer noted that the Inca would remove the organs before preparing a body for burial, not all of the mummies found by Uhle show evidence of this process. If performed, removing the organs would aid the body in mummification by removing a source of putrefactive liquids which would cause the body to deteriorate. The body may have been rubbed with herbs before wrapping (Fleming 1983:151). Although the shape of the bundles found in Pachacamac have varied with time, the bodies would have been wrapped in layers of plain cloth with the final outer layer being the finest. According to Dr. Anne Tiballi, the bundle would be the new embodiment of the person with the outer layer serving as their clothing. Between the layers would be placed objects such as tools, pitchers, and ritual dolls as well as various foodstuffs assumedly to aid the person in the afterlife (Figure 1). Around these objects would be packed cotton, leaves, and a basket framing to help give the bundle its shape (1983:147). The bundles found at Pachacamac typically had a shape similar to a bell or “bale” shape as described by Fleming (1983:147). or much more irregularly wrapped (Fleming 1986:42-43). The bale shape would include a false head made of wood with inlaid shell, cloth, or ceramic inserted via a wooden post into the top of the bale (1986:43; Figures 1-2).

Enshrinement of the dead would take place after one year. During this process, llama blood would again be sprinkled on the deceased, the community would drink chicha and dance to drummers, and guinea pig hair, maize flower, oyster shell powder, llama fat, and coca would be burned for the deceased. The dead would then be carried to the place of burial for the ancestors - either in a cave, ,the chullpa (multiple burial tower), or burial complex by the plaza (Salomon 1991:333). For the elite, the enshrinement would entail fifteen days of visiting where the community would wear disguises, carry the deceased’s garments, tools, and arms, and walk where the deceased frequented and chant their deeds. At the end they would hold purucaya, a festival in the plaza involving two squadrons of men and two squadrons of women in men’s clothing dancing, fighting, and chanting the victories of the deceased. In the case of the ruler, three thousand llamas would be sacrificed. One thousand children would be buried alive, a boy and a girl at each place the ruler visited. The ruler would be buried with his treasure, and his successor would make an effigy of him (334-335). Regardless of political standing, the deceased would need to be prepared and sacrifices would need to be made to pay respect.

Interaction with the Living [Anastasia]

The ancestors regardless of class would be petitioned to help the living survive and prosper. At the harvest and at the sowing time sacrifices would be made to ensure or repay a bountiful year. Lay people would visit their ancestors, mend their clothing, offer them food and coca, and light candles for them. They may ask the ancestors for favors including aid in learning a skill, a profitable year, or safety in travel (Salomon 1991:324). Their outer garments would be changed with fashion and technological trends (1991:345). Children would be presented to the ancestors when they reached seven years of age, and engaged couples would be presented to their in-laws’ ancestors (1991:324). To this day in Andean communities, the living will visit the dead, sharing offerings and news. The “volatile part” would come down from its resting place at Upaimarca and reunite with its body, conversing with the living through a minister (1991:336-337).

The elite would continue to hold their power after death. The dead would be given endowments of fields - either for growing maize for chicha or for camelid herding - that they would rightfully own. The produce would be given partially as tithes to the priests who conducted the mortuary rites, and mostly to supply the people during festival times. For certain festivals, the previous rulers would be carried out from their tombs with some of their treasure on their litters to join the current ruler (Figure 21). The ruler would in effect have two bundles - one bundle prepared from his own body in the care of the royal family, and a statue called his “brother” for the people (1991:326, 322). The elite would be respected through the provision of land and the living’s consideration of them as a continued source of authority.

Pachacamac Bundles [Anastasia]

Child Bundle: Object 26626

One of the many bundles that Max Uhle excavated at Pachacamac for the Penn Museum was Object 26626 (Figure 2). The bundle has the bale shape and false head consistent with the type of bundles found in the Lower Stratum of the North Terrace of the Painted Temple of Pachacamac (Fleming 1986:43). Based on x-rays performed at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in 1981, the bundle contains the remains of a twelve-year-old child, intact and posed in fetal position at the center. The sex of the child could not be determined, although Stuart Fleming believes that the child was female due to the presence of shawl pins or tupus worn by women (1986:44). The child died of natural causes, likely due to tuberculosis meningitis or a brain tumor evident from the sutural separation on their skull (Fleming 1983:153). The child would have had elite status due to the bundle’s proximity to the Painted Temple.

According to the x-ray, the child was also buried with pottery, gourds, ears of maize, pouches of spindle rods, boxes of cotton and peanut shells, and two dolls - one wood and one ceramic - on miniature funerary litters (Fleming 1983:152; Fleming 1986:44; Figures 28-29). The cotton wrapping in between layers deterred identification for other items. On the outside of the bundle was wrapped a textile with a red, black, and white geometric pattern. Around the neck is a necklace of pouches containing medicinal herbs such as coca, quinoa, and mucuna and dye making plants such as annatto, taya, and chica (Fleming 1986:42). The false head is made of cloth, though adornments such as hair or a head covering and feathers are missing (Figure 2).

Goals of the Final Project

To visualize the past/people the past, we originally had three goals for this project to model:1) a bundle using the Penn Museum’s collection to show the layers and objects present within, 2) additional bundles based on the original as assets to populate sacred spaces, temples, and cemeteries , and 3) a scene showing the living interacting with the dead. After considering the time frame, we decided to model a scene in which a team of people from Pachacamac carry a bundle on a litter. We wanted to present the living interacting with the dead, and decided that retrieving a bundle for a festival would be a reasonable option with our level of skill. In crafting these bundles, we wanted to pay attention to detail in modelling the textiles to respect their intricacy and important place in Andean culture.

Our first step was to contact Dr. Anne Tiballi to observe both the Inca textiles and two of the bundles in the Penn Museum Collection (Figure 3). In viewing the textiles and bundle in person, we appreciated the vibrancy and intricacy of the fabric. Furthermore, Dr. Tiballi provided an excellent overview of the relationship between textiles and ancestor worship. For any bundles where the decorative outer layer was not visible, Kelcey used examples of typical textiles from the Painted Temple of Pachacamac from Vanstan (1967) provided by Dr. Tiballi (Vanstan 1967).

We knew that we had wanted to model a child bundle (Object 26626) found by Max Uhle due to its near complete state, textile wrapping with colorful geometric design, and excellent conservation. Based on documentation and previous analysis by Fleming (1983; 1986), we know who this child was and some of their burial offerings. Using reference images for the funerary objects (Figures 28-29), we could recreate at least some of the associated grave offerings. For the other bundles, we used reference images of Uhle from the Penn Museum Archives (Figure 13). We took the liberty of deriving the colors for these bundles from our textile studies because these images were in black and white.

We decided to focus on modeling additional bundles and focusing on creating the scenes. We had also decided to create a scene of a funerary architecture for two of our bundle models to display them in situ.

Process

Modelling of Bundles, Funerary Objects, and Architecture [Anastasia]

We used Autodesk Maya in order to model the bundles, funerary objects, and scenes for the project.

Object 26626.

For the child bundle, we began by tracing the body of the reference image (Figure 2) using the Draw Curves tool. Having completed the curve, she rotated the object on the y-axis in order to create a smoother cylindrical shape (Figure 4). After obtaining this polygon, she duplicated the base and cut off the top and bottom of the duplicate to form the checkerboard outer layer (Figure 5). She then scaled the outer layer to fit over the base. Finally, she added edge loops to the outer layer so that she could stretch the fabric to fit over the top edge of the plain cloth layer.

In order to create the false head, we first tried tracing the head with the Draw Curves tool and rotating along the y-axis. However, this process created a knot of complex geometry on top of the head which needed to be scrapped (Figure 6). We then created a sphere and stretched its vertices to reflect the shape of the head in the reference image. For the post, we stretched a cylinder into a long post and placed it between the head and the bale. Without a clear reference image of the post for this particular bundle, we took some artistic license. We also scaled down and rotated a cylinder to form the nose on the head. We originally textured the head using a screen shot sample of the reference image before we modelled a much more fitting textile with the head’s eyes included (Figure 7).

To create the bag of pouches around the bundle’s neck, we first tried stretching a cylinder and rotating it to fit around the bundle’s neck, but we could not get the vertices to fit. We then created a curve around the bundle’s neck in order to ensure a proper fit. We then tried to extract four circular planes along the curve and then use the twist feature to simulate rope. Unfortunately, the rope’s geometry was too complex for such a minor piece of the model. To compromise, we extracted a cylinder along the curve and textured the rope using a small sample of a photograph of rope. While the thickness and color were not perfect, the rope was more of a guide for pouch placement, and we had difficulties scaling the rope down any further (Figure 8).

To form the pouches, we added edge loops to a cylinder and scaled down one edge roughly four fifths from the bottom. We also scaled the upper loops and cut out the top face to create an opening (Figure 9). Once the pouch was completed, we copied and pasted them onto the rope (Figure 10). Afterwards, we rotated and scaled the pouches so that they would fall more naturally and would not be so uniform (Figure 11). We debated leaving out the pouches but ultimately decided that this educational detail was worth the effort.

We had finished the bundle with the textures created by Kelcey (Figure 12).

Other Bundles

For our second and third bundles, we used one of the Penn Museum Archives images of the Uhle Expedition (Figure 13) to model two more bundles, again formed by rotating curves along the y-axis. After additional shaping, we cut out faces for each bundle to make the head visible. Unfortunately, though Stuart Fleming published the image we used as a reference in his 1986 article, he did not provide any accession numbers for either bundle or their false heads. They may be among the bundles excavated by Uhle that have been lost (Fleming 1983:149). Because we only had the reference photograph for these bundles, we constructed a simple head for one bundle by altering a sphere and adding a cone for a nose (Figure 14). For the bundle on the left, we found an image of a false head in the Penn Museum collection - Object 26662 - that looked highly similar (Figure 15). We then stretched a sphere to match the general head shape and extruded the nose and mouth before adding the head into the bundle shape (Figures 16, 17). Having completed the bundles, we modelled the posts used to carry the bundle on the left in the photograph by stretching two cylinders, pulling up every other face on the top portion, and slicing out a hole using the intersection function under the booleans mesh tool (Figure 18). We copied and pasted the outer layers of both bundles. For the larger bundle, we textured the outermost layers using the plain cloth texture and cut out a small surrounding the face so the audience could see the more elaborate fabrics underneath. For the smaller bundle, we created a top and bottom half for the bundle. The top half had the more decorative texture as indicated in the reference image while the bottom half had the plain cloth texture. We wanted to capture the protective outer layer as seen in the photograph (Figure 13). We textured the bundles with textiles modelled by Kelcey (Figure 19).

The Litter

For the litter, we first chose a reference image drawn by Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala in 1615 of an “Aya Marcai or ‘bearing the dead’” ritual (Figure 20). The litter consists of two pieces of rope with wooden planks suspended between them. The design required two people to carry it. To create this litter, we stretched two cylinders and created a less rigid appearance for the rope with the soft selection tool, adding more curves to the cylinder’s shape. We then stretched a cube to form a thin wooden plank and then copied and pasted the planks into their positions. We textured the rope with the same image file from Object 26626’s necklace and used the Maya Wood texture for the planks (Figure 21).

Upon reviewing our notes, we noticed that other depictions of Inca litters were more ornate. Concerned that the colonial Spanish artist’s depiction may have been culturally biased, we contacted Dr. Erickson for proper reference images and settled on a depiction of what a litter likely would have looked like in the Chimú period (Figure 22). Though we initially chose this litter for convenience and the presence of a bundle in the image, the bundles being modelled may have originated in the Chimú period. Fleming states that the types of bundles modelled in our project - with “bale” shapes and false heads - were found in the lower stratum of burials beneath the north terrace of the Painted Temple of Pachacamac (1986:42-43). Though Fleming notes that the lower stratum had better preservation than the upper stratum, he does not provide any idea of dates for bundles found in the lower stratum. However, given that the upper stratum dated from roughly 800 - 1100 CE, the lower stratum may have had some overlap with these time periods (1986:42). The Chimu rose to power in Pachacamac around 800 CE, which could correspond with when these bundles were buried (Fleming 1983:145).

To create the second litter, we stretched two cylinders and added in three flattened cubes to form the seat and the cushion (Figure 23). We added in more cylinders and cubes to form the ornamentation and, using the symmetry function, extruded the surfaces on one bar to create the ornamentation. For the texturing, we used the eyedropper tool to pull the green color from the cushion in the reference image. With this tool, we also pulled the proper blend of colors from the grain of the wood in the picture to recreate the base color, ring color, and grain in the Maya Wood Texture. We made the texture look more lifelike through adjusting the Ai Standard Surface Roughness feature (Figure 24).

The Litter Scene

For the Litter Scene, we used the Female Maya Model provided to create four women to hold the litter on their shoulders. We used this model mostly for practical reasons as we had not had access to the male model until later in the process. We recognize that men typically were responsible for ancestor bundles after their bodies had mummified, although the scholarship does also admit that mortuary practices tended to vary among regions (Salomon 1991:327, 331). We imported the second litter file and combined all of its elements to form a cohesive object. We then imported and posed one female model to grab the pole of the litter with both hands and have one foot forward. We copied, pasted, reflected, and edited as necessary, resulting in four women carrying the litter. We then added the child bundle model to test the rendering (Figure 25). For the lighting, we initially used an area light, but after the image refused to render we increased the intensity and added a skydome light.

Unfortunately, when rendering with Arnold, we discovered that the Maya Wood Texture is not compatible with this software. We instead used the “Wood Veneer 1 PBR Material” from freepbr.com for any wooden objects including the litter (Figure 26). We textured the humans using files provided by the TAs. For the ground, we used “Sand #1 PBR Material” from the same site. Finally, we switched the child bundle with one of the Max Uhle bundles for a better presentation. We have three Arnold rendered images of this final version of the scene (Figures 27-29).

The Funerary Objects

We crafted the pitcher, the bag of spindles, and the wooden funerary doll on a miniature litter found inside the child bundle using photographs from Stuart Fleming as guides (Figures 30-31). To create the pitcher, we revolved a curve of the object, cut out the top faces, and extruded the handle according to the reference image. To form the bag of spindles, we stretched a cylinder using added edge loops and cut out the top faces to form an opening where we could add more stretched cylinders for the spindles (Figure 32). We used the wood texture for the spindles, the terracotta texture as a temporary texture for the pitcher, and a textile by Kelcey for the bag (Figure 33). For the doll, we flattened a cube for the body’s base and layered stretched cubes to form the litter’s framework. We stretched a cylinder to form the head and extruded the nose and mouth (Figure 34). We used the wood texture for the head and posts of the litter and the plain cloth texture for the body (Figure 35).

The Burial Chamber

For the burial chamber, we cut a sphere in half across the x-axis and then cut out the faces in front and on top of the structure. We then extruded the top faces and stretched them upward to form more of a tunnel. We added in a flat disc to serve as the floor and fitted it to the base of the chamber shape. We added a flat plane on top to form the ground. We added in an area light inside the chamber so the audience could see inside the structure (Figure 36). We then scaled up the top faces and scaled out the edges in the middle to form a softer cone shape. We textured the ground and chamber with the previously mentioned sand PBR. Using the boolean intersection function, we cut a hole into the ground to create the tunnel leading to the chamber. We imported the two bundles from the Uhle expedition and scaled up the bundles using the hole as a reference (Figure 36). We rendered the scene twice using the Arnold Renderer (Figures 38-39).

Modeling Textiles [Kelcey]

We used Autodesk Maya in order to model and “dress” bundles. We used Substance Painter and Substance Alchemist to make textures and design textiles.

Textiles

In addition to modeling two bundles, we also worked on designing textiles and texturing objects. The decision to expand our focus to include textiles came from our desire to make bundles realistic in ways reflect the social meaning of textiles for Andean people as central to their material culture while reflecting the skill of Andean weavers. Accomplishing this goal required us to research textiles so we could imagine the people who were mummies and their place in Inca society. We collected Inca weaving patterns, iconography, colors, and designs. We also learned two additional systems Substance Alchemist and Substance Painter.

Background

Clothing represented status and relationship to the Inca styles and patterns were used to distinguish the different social positions and identities of individuals within the empire. Weaving quality and material separated kinds of textiles, weavers, and weavers of clothing. For example, clothing made from plain weave cotton and llama wool (Awasqa) were for soldiers and non-elites. Weavers of Awasqa cloth were non-elite women who used low-cost materials to make tribute textiles and textiles for their communities. Qompi was woven by elite women who were members of the conquered people, making the cloth as a tribute, and weavers also made qompi for the state who were men and women: the aqllakuna and the qompikamayoc (Costin 1998: 125- 129). Unlike Awasqa, Qompi was made of high-quality alpaca wool and cotton, was dyed and given detailed iconography, was worn by Inca elites, and given out by the state as gifts to conquered elites.

The Inca controlled textiles through maintaining state weaving roles by distributing textiles throughout the empire, and by requiring textiles as a tribute; however, there was still room for individuality and non-Inca ethnic identity (Costin 2018). Textiles made of qompi cloth or Awasqa cloth could be styled and wove in ways that signaled more than concurred status but also regionality and history (Tiballi 2014). The signaling was so important that when visiting principalities of the empire, the Inca ruler would dress in hybrid textiles or ones that combined Inca and local styles (Costin 2018: 9). Just as the Inca incorporated Ychsma into their pantheon of gods renaming the deity Pachacamac, the Inca pulled diverse ethnic identities into the empire through the creation of "hybrid textiles" and state textiles, and the movement of textiles.

Inspiration

Andean people combined color, weaving patterns, and iconography in ways that made Andean textiles powerful statements full of meaning. Andean people also used textiles when preparing the dead: they made bundles by wrapping textiles around the body. To make our bundles accurate, we had to create models that connected the social significance of textiles to the social significance of ancestor veneration.

To accomplish our goal, we used a variety of sources when designing textiles. We created collections of images found in books and photographs we took at the museum. We referenced the collections when we needed inspiration and direction. Our inspiration for colors came from research on Andean dyes and textile colors by Elena Phipps (2010) and Christiane Calados (2004). These sources, in addition to photographs of textile fragments from the Penn Museum, were the basis for understanding the kinds of colors the Inca and other Andean people used for dressing the mummies of the elite. Because the mummies had multiple layer of and diverse textile types (design and fabric type), building a collection of color sources was necessary. With these sources, we had a selection of different shades of blue, red, gold, tan, gold, white, and black.

Our inspiration for weaving patterns and icons came from the technical drawings and photographs in Ina Vanstan (1967). This source had detailed black and white images of weaving patterns and iconography that showed them as a part of a collection and individually. We scanned images of the most complete textiles other images showing iconography and design details (Figure 40). In researching colors, we learned that Andean textiles have dense groupings and patterning of iconography such as llamas. In addition to icons, Inca embroidery patterns were also design structures that we could use in a variety of ways. Despite the black and white scan quality, we edited them by adjusting the contrast, brightness, and other aspects resulting in a reasonably clear iconography that could be given colors colors.

The weaving patterns (Figure 41) were useful in two ways. First, in their ability to be imported into Alchemist and Painter software, scaled-down or up, connected and separated. The weaving patterns were also useful as a reference for use when editing fabric presets or smart materials in Painter. We could modify the tightness or looseness of basic fabric textiles Painter to represent fine and high-quality fabrics or more utilitarian ones. Also, we saved more recent images of Pachacamac mummy bundles of the Penn Museum that were better quality than those from Dr. Stuart Fleming (1986) (Figure 13).

Substance Painter and Alchemist software programs are powerful visualization tools and capable of making textiles for mummies appear photorealistic, but have a steep learning curve. The Teaching Assistants were helped us become familiar with Substance Painter. Using Substance Alchemist was a trial and error process that we worked through on our own. Every textile successfully made by using these two programs was the result of many unsuccessful or experimental textiles and the reworking of bundle objects.

Texturing Bundles

The first step in making textiles was creating a smooth bundle object. To do this, we used the image of the child bundle following the process we used earlier but now with a focus on keeping the shape as smooth and symmetrical as possible. The purpose of modeling this object was to resembled a bundle as accurately as possible that could easily be textured, then pulled and stretched to match the shape and scale of an authentic bundle. Textiles P-1, P-2, and P-3 were made by using the smooth bundle object.

Textile A-1

With this object completed, we used Substance Alchemist to make the child bundle textile. We took a screenshot of the best-looking portion of the child bundle fabric. We imported it into Alchemist and used the bitmap to material function to save the pattern to a material preset (Figure 43). Then we changed the material preset from the default rubber to fabric and adjusted the tiling and displacement to multiply and arrange the pattern. The original image shows the wear and natural decay of the textile. After carefully adding and adjusting filters, all of the options that fall under finishes, generators, tools, and weathering, we were able to make the old fabric sampled look new, bright, and mostly whole. Alchemist was not the best program for textiles that have different kinds of iconography, nor does it work with all patterns (Figure 44). The TAs did not have as much experience with Alchemist as they did with Painter, so after making the child bundle textile, we switched to Painter. We returned to using Alchemist later in the semester for textiles A-2 (Figure 45), A-3, and A-4.

Textile P-1

For textile P-1, we used Substance Painter. Our image of a bundle from the Penn Museum was limited in the amount of information it provided. While the iconography was clear in the image, we could not see specifics of the pattern or design. We had to guess using our collection of sources. We selected three icons from our collection and saved them as alphas in Painter. We experimented with organization of the icons and their colors. The image had a bright yellow, red, and what looked like pink or tan. We tried and failed to use the color sampler to match the colors. In our first attempt, we manually modified the colors until they matched. With the object completely yellow, we made all alphas red and stamped the icons on in neat rows (Figure 45). The outcome was not satisfactory, so we tried again, and this time, we used sourced red and yellow from our collection and added alfas with more attention (Figure 47). (TBD) For textiles P-2 and P-3, we used the weave pattern collection as a reference for these textiles. One is brown, and one is orange.

Textile P-4

For textile P-4, we imported a "lumpy" bundle into Painter. This image had a rounded top representing the protective head covering used by Andean people to protect the more exquisite fabrics underneath. The outer layers of bundles seem to have been plain and rough fabrics with the nicer textiles layered underneath. Working on this bundle was the beginning of our effort to show bundles as being layered with different kinds of fabrics. The rendered recreation of the child bundle shows two layers. Our model of textile P-4 tries to show layers through crinkles and texture patterns (Figure 48). We eventually changed our approach and decided to use the different objects that we made together to show layering (Figure 46). Our second attempt at showing textile layers combined some of the other textiles and burial offerings that we modelled.

Textile P-5

For textile P-5, we decided to model the clothing worn by Inca soldiers (Costin 1998: 126). Using a reference photograph (Figure 48), we scaled down and stretched one of the bundles made and imported the 3D model into Painter. We added layers of folds and lumps to make the new bundle distinct from the others that we modeled (Figure 50). We added color and adjusted the fabric weave pattern until it looked like fabric rather than plastic. Next, we draped the object in color using the Polygon Fill function (Figure 51-52). We learned from making textile P-1 and some failed attempts (Figure 53) that adjusting the screen view from 3D to 2D could help us make the tiled pattern as accurate as possible (Figure 54).

Texturing Heads

Child Bundle Head

With these textiles completed, we decided to work on texturing bundle heads, an addition to typical Andean mummy bundles that give the object more of a human look. This child bundle head is made of fabric, so we decided to match the color match a new bundle head before the fading that occurs over time of (Figure 55). We also made the weaving pattern match the details in the original image. Next, we took screenshots of the painted eyes and saved them as Alphas. Adding eyes was complicated because the color was faded and did not blend in with the bright, beautiful new orange fabric we gave the bundle head. Our attempt to draw the eyes manually was not successful. We eventually used the Paintbrush tool to blend the colors by making a pallet of oranges and gently combining the colors to create a smoother transition from bright orange to faded orange (Figure 56).

Other Bundle Head

When doing our research at the Penn Museum, we took photographs of three actual bundle heads and used a clear image of a similar object (Pozzi-Escot 2017: cover) (Figures 57-59) as reference images for texturing. We used a saved material preset "leather" and modified it to look less leathery and more like the course fabric used to make the objects in the Penn Museum (Figure 60). Then, we used an Alpha to create an eye shape on the head (Figure 61) and added white and black color to make the eyes.

Accessories

Our next step was to add some decorative features of bundles. Making textiles included people from different social and political spheres of Andean society, and part of what made the work so inclusive were the decorative features of Inca clothing. Feathers were used to add individuality in style (Costin 2018). Based on the reference photographs, the bundle heads of the Penn Museum had feathers attached to the headpieces such as a headband. Initially, we tried to work with the Teaching Assistants to make feathers using different design systems. The learning curve using this approach was too difficult.

We decided to use Maya and Painter to model feathers or a feather-like object attached to a fine cloth headband. We made a curved and uneven object in Maya (Figure 62) and imported it into Painter for texturing by adding a hexagon alpha to the front (Figure 63). Next, we exported the textile to Maya and adjusted the shape of the object by adding and deleting edges so the "feather" stood out as an adornment attached to the headband externally rather than woven into the textile (Figures 64-66).

Hair

Bundle heads also had attached animal and/or human hair to appear more lifelike. We used Maya in conjunction with Painter to texture a curved wig shaped object. We then imported the object into Painter and used a pre-saved wavy Alpha to paint "hair." We altered the height, shine, and roughness for each stroke to make hair strands visible. A result is a textured object that can be pulled, stretched. Vertices can be added and removed to appear longer or shorter (Figure 67).

Texturing Funerary Objects

The funerary objects were the last things we textured. For the spindle bag model, we used an reference image of a striped spindle bag from the Penn Museum's Pachacamac collection (Figure 68) and images of medicine bags also from collection (Figure 69). For the spindles, we used the images of spindles found in Denise Pozzi-Escot (2017). Despite adding and adjusting many of the design features in Painter, we could not get the spindles to appear realistic with decorative details; so we abandoned that project.

For the doll, we used the material presets in Painter. The filed details for three presets were moved to one folder in Painter for the new textile for the doll. After editing each feature carefully, we made a textile that can be used for the doll and/or any bundle.

For the vase, we added color and roughness to the object in Painter and wrapped one of the icons we saved earlier around the vase. Once that was complete, adding color variation was attempted, but unfortunately changed the color for the entire model.

Pulling it all together

Maya could not render the 3D models and scene with the same level of vibrancy and detail as those produced in Substance renders (Figure 70). We hope that in Unreal Engine, the textiles and textures will render and preserve all features that make them accurate and unique.

Results and Future Work

[Kelcey]

We created two scenes that meet our original goals. The first scene shows how the living interacted with the dead by positioning the bundle on a carrying litter carried by four women. The second scene is of a cemetery and shows a variety of bundles, masks, textiles, and other objects together as they might have been during the time of Inca rule at Pachacamac. Our project used the Penn Museum's collection for modeling bundles, elaborate textiles, and textures that can be used by others on any project involving the site of Pachacamac.

[Anastasia]

For future work, we would like to improve upon the litter scene. Particularly, we would like to add in more objects and people for better ritual context. As deceased rulers and elites would be carried with their possessions, a crowd observing the event and additional ornate accoutrements would improve the scene. We also need a better substitute for the wood texturing on the litter and elsewhere.

Another step would be to create a complex bundle that could be interactively assembled or unwrapped to show the many layers and associated objects around the body. To do so, we would model more funerary objects, develop more layers, and add in packing material such as leaves, cotton, and the basket framework (Fleming 1986:43). We would potentially keep the transparent animation to show each layer at a time as we had originally planned. This interactive model would help the audience to better understand the bundle and how constructed. We also would add more decorative features to the bundles such as feathers, elaborate headbands, and different hairstyles to better evoke the intricacies and individuality associated with these bundles. As discussed in the documentation of the child bundle, each bundle’s preparation and burial could tell the biographical story about this person in life and in death.

Conclusion [Kelcey]

Our goal in 3D modeling objects and scenes to "visualize the past/people the past" in a way that was accurate and respectful to the sensitive nature of our subject. The research and the decisions made were guided by attention to how our 3D models might be interpreted by the public and Andean descendant communities today. Rather than portraying the Andean ancestors in scenes of life as "gone" or forgotten, our peopling the past presents the important cultural context of Andean ancestor worship. Peopling the past also meant being conscientious of how we wanted people to understand our work and the history it represents.

In Andean tradition, death did not separate generations from each-other but instead connected them in rituals that celebrate the life process through the veneration of the ancestors and creation of mummies. As a central location for maintaining Inca control over the coastal region and for upholding the religious rituals that cemented the cite in Andean culture, the site of Pachacamac was a pivotal point for exchange between the living and the dead. This exchange was not separate from the other activities that happened at the ceremonial center, such as weaving textiles, trading goods, large celebratory feasts, and state banquets. We hope that our research project shows ancestor veneration and the social force of the Andean ancestors as connected to life at Pachacamac and that this life was vibrant and rich.

References Cited