Overview
A poncho is a length of woven wool with a neck opening cut in the middle, so it hangs front and back over the shoulders and leaves the arms free beneath. Thick and often boldly striped or patterned, it sheds rain and cold on the mountain and the open plain alike.
How it is worn
It is dropped over the head and worn loose over other clothes, pulled close for warmth or thrown back over a shoulder for work and riding, and folded small when carried. Its colours and patterns can mark the wearer’s home region or people, from Andean communities to the Mapuche and the gaucho.
History
Woven cloaks of this kind are ancient in the Andes, and the poncho spread with sheep’s wool after the conquest across the whole cordillera and the southern grasslands. It remains both an everyday working garment and, in fine handwoven form, a treasured emblem of the region.