378 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I33 



than 100 years, whom I visited, spun fine yarn. Spinning may be done 

 while sitting down, standing, or walking. 



The traditional loom — still in use today — is a rectangular frame- 

 work of poles, usually of rauli which does not easily split. (PI. 78, j.) 

 Poles are tied together, letting ends protrude, with leather ropes or 

 thongs. Swords are usually made of wood of wild apple (manzana 

 silvestre) or chifichifi, since neither splinters easily. Women do the 

 weaving, but girls are taught to do so as soon as they are old enough 

 to learn. The weaver sits with her loom slanting slightly away from 

 her, and weaving is done upward. Both woof and warp are of the 

 same material. 



Articles woven today, for both family use and sale, are ponchos, 

 belts, shawls, bed blankets, choapino (saddle blankets), matra 

 (throws), saddlebags for carrying purposes, and makun (rugs). 

 Matra and choapino are placed under saddles; they and makun are 

 used to sit upon when resting on the ground or on low benches. 

 Standard size for throws is 40 x 50 inches (pi. 79, -?, j) ; for bed 

 blankets, 63x82 (pis. 79, /, 4; 80) ; for ponchos, the wearer for 

 whom it is woven (pi. 78, ^) ; saddlebags, 40 to 44 inches in length and 

 16 to 17 inches in width, with an opening for the saddle 9 by 12 to 

 II by 14 inches (pi. 78, 5). 



Designs are sometimes woven into certain articles. No two designs 

 are alike, but a similarity exists in patterns by which an experienced 

 eye can tell that a woven article is Araucanian-made. 'T saw the 

 patterns my mother wove and remembered them. From them and 

 others I saw I worked out my own. We carried the patterns in our 

 mind. No woman would think of copying patterns. Every woman 

 thinks out her own and then dyes her yarn accordingly." 



In general, designs had no meaning. Two, however, were spoken of 

 as "crawling-worms" design (pi. 79, j) and "tail-feathers-of-a-bird" 

 pattern (pi. 79, 2). These were considered ordinary ones, and women 

 varied them only slightly. "We make these when we are tired; they 

 take no thinking. Every woman knows them." 



DYEING 



Guanaco wool was not dyed but was bleached white for borders on 

 shawls and stripes in ponchos. A white clay known as mallo was 

 used ; today this is used in bleaching yarn of sheep's wool. (It was used 

 to make pottery too.) Yarn stored in it until it gives a peculiar sensa- 

 tion to the touch (this may be two months later) will be "whiter than 

 white, a color known as liiu." Once so bleached, yarn will take no 



