Alpacas - An Ancient Treasure Rediscovered

Alpacas have journeyed over five thousand in partnership with man. Consider the following:

• A thousand years before the Egyptian pyramids were completed, indigenous people's of the High Andes were measuring their wealth by the numbers of alpacas they owned and were laying the foundation of a culture based on alpaca textiles.
• Two millennium before King David wrote his Biblical Psalms, these same peoples were creating multi colored fabrics produced from alpaca fiber, woven goods of such skill that students are still amazed by their quality.
• Before the fall of Troy, the Andean peoples were practicing man's first known use of selective breeding,and were producing alpacas whose quality of fleece was far superior to even the best contemporary alpacas.
• Before Rome began to build its empire the alpaca was firmly a major part of the Inca empire which stretched over most of the range of the Andes Mountains.

When Spanish conquistador arrived in the 17th century, and began the bondage and genocide of the Inca people, the alpaca became a tool of conquest. The alpaca, which had been treasured for almost 4000 years as a source of highly prized fiber, was systematically eliminated. The decimation of the great alpaca herds would have led to their extinction except for the surviving Inca seeking refuge in the highest reaches of the Andes, where they took a few of their most prized alpacas with them. Hidden away in the harsh environment of the Altiplano, alpacas and their herds people sustained the remnants of a lifestyle that was thousands of years old.

In the 1800's alpaca fleece was used as ballast for ships sailing from the new world., Sir Titus Salt of London came across a bale of alpaca on the docks and began promoting its use in the finest textile mills and fashion houses of Europe.

In 1983, small numbers of alpacas were first imported into the United States where they were used as breeding stock.

Today, approximately three million alpacas exist worldwide, with 98 percent still located in Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. The alpaca herd in the United States is estimated over 40,000 and is increasing gradually.

Celestial Alpacas is excited to be a part of the re-discovery of alpacas. We are breeding fine quality alpacas possessing the superior fiber necessary to compete in today's fashion and textile industries.