[Illustration: Fig. 3. Complete widths of textiles in Chincha plain-weave group. Separately woven webs of two-breadth cloths indicated by chevrons. Narrowest width, 4 inches.]
[Illustration: Fig. 4. Complete lengths of textiles in Chincha plain-weave group. Separately woven webs of two-breadth cloths indicated by chevrons. Shortest length, 9.5 inches.]
In the Chincha 4- lot, loomstrings of from 2- to 12-ply formed the weft for from two to six courses of weaving. In seven of the twenty-four specimens showing finished ends, the loomstring stopped partway across its course in the web and was there joined to the regular weft yarn. In two the joining was effected by finger knots, in the other by splicing (?). The two specimens (4-3889c and 4-4029) having strong 12-ply loomstrings were small but complete cloths which had been doubled and stitched along the sides to form bags. The loomstrings thus served to reinforce the open mouth of the bag.
In eleven specimens the loomstrings had an initial S and final Z twist; twelve show the opposite combination. In one specimen (4-4056) the separate plies have an S twist, but the final yarn is untwisted.
Complete lengths of Chincha plain-weave cloths in order from shortest to longest:
4-3889c 9.5 4-4029 10.5 4-3962 11.5 4-3882f 13 4-3633b 15.5 4-3710m 18 16-1260 19 4-3890a 23.5 4-3882a 26.5 4-4056 27 16-1253 28.5 4-4027 29 4-4022a 40 (× 2) 4-3883b 43.5 (× 2) 16-1250 52 (× 2) 16-1290 53 4-3883d 53.5 4-3973d 59.5 (× 2) 4-4059a 62 16-1292 62
Ninety-odd of the measured cloths are incomplete as to length. These preserved lengths fall within arbitrary groupings as follows:
From 5 inches to 20 inches in length 29 pieces From 21 inches to 30 inches in length 33 pieces From 31 inches to 40 inches in length 17 pieces From 41 inches to 50 inches in length 7 pieces From 51 inches to 60 inches in length 4 pieces From 61 inches to 70 inches in length 2 pieces
There are three times as many weavings with complete widths as with complete lengths; 60 as compared to 20. Clues to the wrappings or blankets of which these breadths were sections are frequently furnished by traces of stitchery and broken threads on the side selvages. As shown by table 2 and figure 3, the five narrowest complete breadths (Group 1) are within a range of 4 to 12 inches. Narrow widths can be woven most rapidly on the backstrap loom. Complete breadths in Group 2 (18 specimens) fall within the range of 14 to 20 inches. These widths, also, can be woven without much effort. Seaming together narrow breadths appears to have been preferred to weaving wider ones equal to the two or three which compose some of the rectangular specimens.