Mama Quilla is the Inca goddess of the moon. Married to Inti, the sun god, she is the female half of the divine equation. Before the Spaniards got to work smashing and melting things, Mama Quilla was worshipped in temples with walls of pure silver. Silver is her metal: in Inca mythology, silver is the “rain of the moon” (or tears of the moon), just as gold is the sweat of the sun.
Depicting Mama Quilla is an exercise in creativity, since it seems her original cult image was just a silver disk (the inset in our main illustration is an example of Inca silver). We’re thinking of something a little more human. We’re inspired by the costumes of the moon maidens in the annual Inca festival at Cusco, above, as well as by the silver votive figures of Inca girls/women in elaborate feather headdresses (inset). We’ve combined the two ideas in our design.
The pieces we suggest, from left to right:
1. White layered dress. LotusTraders makes a ton of long white dresses, but we especially love the floaty tiered layers on this one.
2. Royal blue ruana. There is surely no garment more graceful than a ruana. This one is a blend of wool and cotton, which gives you both of the classic Inca fibers in one go. If you want to keep it closed, a silver moon scarf pin would be ideal (like this
, for example).
3. Woven sash from Ecuador. This multipurpose textile is 20″ x 60″ and features traditional Andean patterns. Just fold it lengthwise and wrap it around your waist as a sash. The store has these in different colors; we chose the light blue, which has all the same colors as the moon maiden outfits.
4. White feather headdress. When we found this item we were thrilled. White feathers plus silver sequins. If that store is out of stock, you can also get the headdress here
5. Silver disk necklace and earring set. A perfect echo of Mama Quilla’s original cult image. Hang the earrings from each side of the feather headdress.
6. Pair of silver arm cuffs. These are a great size, five inches. Just like the moon maidens!
Shoes: The skirt is long and full, so your shoes won’t show much. But we suggest something silver (of course).
