Devil in the details

Nestled amongst the multimillion-dollar tractor companies at Fieldays is a South American burst of colour.

With good from the Andes to Auckland, the Alpaca Suri-Bol stand has some of the more interesting items on sale at their Mystery Creek stand. One of them, a bright Alpaca wool balaclava mask, has a political side.

The multi-coloured balaclava, which come with devilish horns and a protruding chin, hails from Peru. While it is traditionally worn during Peru’s iconic carnival season between February and March, in recent years it has been turning up at anti-government protests in the country.

Since the ousting of president Pedro Castillo in December 2022, at least 60 people have died during the violent protests and some participants have taken to wearing the carnival masks to hide their identity from authorities.

Despite these heavy connotations, the full face masks are a more common sight at festivals where they feature in ceremonial dances like the jaw dropping danza de las Tijeras aka Scissor Dance. This gymnastics-like dance is performed to the sound of harps and violins.

In the dance, performers hide their faces in the masks while performing dangerous feats such as sword-swallowing and eating snakes. The stallholder said European settlers compared the unruly dance and curious masks to a “dance with the devil.”

Alpaca Suri Bol is run by the Sanchez family who import all their products from their home country Bolivia, as well as from Peru and Ecuador. They said alpaca wool was once considered by Incan royalty to be “luxurious” and the “fibre of the gods”. The stall has a range of goods made from the wool, providing a colourful option for people looking for something a bit different to more traditional rural attire.