Feather bonnet

Full view of a Feather_headdress
Mundurucú , Central Brazil, pre-1865
Scarlet macaw feathers, toucan, cotton
Accession Number 20.4.65.2

The Mundurucú were among the most feared warlike nations of the Amazon. They fought other Native groups as allies of the Portuguese in the late 1700s.

The Mundurucú tamed certain species of birds for their feathers, which they then skilfully wove into ceremonial bonnets, armlets and sceptres.


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