Four-Cornered Hat 500–900 Tiwanaku or Wari Finely woven, brightly colored hats—which customarily feature a square crown, four sides, and four pointed tips—are most frequently associated with two ancient cultures: the Wari, who dominated the south-central highlands and the west coastal regions of Peru from 500-1000 , and the Tiwanaku, who occupied the altiplano (high plain) directly south of Wari-populated areas around the same time. The cultures not only developed and flourished as contemporaries, but also occupied neighboring territories for nearly four centuries. A Wari ceremonial c

Four-Cornered Hat 500–900 Tiwanaku or Wari Finely woven, brightly colored hats—which customarily feature a square crown, four sides, and four pointed tips—are most frequently associated with two ancient cultures: the Wari, who dominated the south-central highlands and the west coastal regions of Peru from 500-1000 , and the Tiwanaku, who occupied the altiplano (high plain) directly south of Wari-populated areas around the same time. The cultures not only developed and flourished as contemporaries, but also occupied neighboring territories for nearly four centuries. A Wari ceremonial center called Cerro Baúl was located a mere five miles from Tiwanaku-settled fields in the Moquegua Valley of Peru. The two cultures likely encountered each other at Cerro Baúl and elsewhere, but the nature of these interactions remains largely unknown. Four-cornered hats from both the Wari and the Tiwanaku were made from camelid fibers carefully prepared into yarns and expertly dyed. Artists from the two cultures also employed similar geometric designs and stylized images representing plants and zoomorphic forms. The Wari and the Tiwanaku’s visual programs, comparable in design and pattern, suggest that they shared primary icons and a common religious foundation. A staffed deity with winged attendants frequently appears in the iconography of both cultures. Despite these parallels, scholars believe that the Wari and the Tiwanaku had distinct and separate socio-political practices, particularly in regards to governance and site building. Although they shared certain technological traditions, such as complex tapestry weaving and knotting techniques, the Wari and the Tiwanaku utilized significantly different construction methods to create four-cornered hats. Wari artists typically fashioned the top and corner peaks as separate parts and later assembled them together. Tiwanaku artists generally knotted from the top down, starting with the top and four peaks, to create a si

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