Ponchos: Art for Survival
In the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina there is a small town called San Antonio de Areco, homeland of the fabled literary gaucho Don Segundo Sombra, who appears in the eponymous novel by Ricardo Güiraldes.
There is a museum there dedicated to this iconic Argentine author, the Museo Gauchesco Ricardo Güiraldes, which celebrates Argentine culture through the figure of the gaucho. More than a cowboy, he is a symbol of masculinity, a folk hero, and an emblem of pampean pride.
Image: belt. Image above: poncho.
Although the poncho is inseparable from the figure of the gaucho, it existed far before him. It has its origins in indigenous Andean culture, lovingly woven by family members to protect husbands, fathers and sons through war and weather. The thick weave provided the wearer’s body with a strong layer of protection, simultaneously leaving the hands free for holding reigns, wielding weapons, and, once adopted by gauchos, launching lassos and boleadoras.
There is a museum there dedicated to this iconic Argentine author, the Museo Gauchesco Ricardo Güiraldes, which celebrates Argentine culture through the figure of the gaucho. More than a cowboy, he is a symbol of masculinity, a folk hero, and an emblem of pampean pride.
Image: belt. Image above: poncho.
Although the poncho is inseparable from the figure of the gaucho, it existed far before him. It has its origins in indigenous Andean culture, lovingly woven by family members to protect husbands, fathers and sons through war and weather. The thick weave provided the wearer’s body with a strong layer of protection, simultaneously leaving the hands free for holding reigns, wielding weapons, and, once adopted by gauchos, launching lassos and boleadoras.
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