Loincloth

A cotton woven garment with light brown, brown and black stripes. The garment is composed of two pieces sewn together, each 68 cm. long. It is wrapped around the waist and fastened, it then simply hangs down to just below the knees.From above the men are usually uncovered but sometimes they wear a small square piece of cloth, of the same texture and dyed in the same way as an itipi. A hole is made in the middle through which the head can pass.Ó An itipi is woven exclusively by men. In fact, the men weave all the clothes themselves, including those of the women. The itipi is dyed in different shades of brown by dipping it in vegetable dye, made from achiote seeds and different kinds of bark, according to the desired shade. The dyeing is done by women because it is a time-consuming job and the men don't want to be tied down for so long. The color arrangement consists of a number of patterns, each with its own name:- Black + rust-brown + black-white-black-white + rust-brown and black is called "puitsah" among the Jibaros.-nb: White (or light red) + brown + black + white (or light red) is called "Yambítsa'hi" (the pig's eye). From the example shown on description card No. 1229-2, this is the most common pattern.\nc: The black and rust-brown stripes are called \nc. We find a broad variety and a narrower one. The one consisting of seven black-rust-brown stripes is called únta yaúakina.Ó The one with five black-rust-brown stripes is called úchichi yaúakina.