Tupu (pin) A.D. 1400-1533 Inca () This object is a tupu (also written as "topu" or "topo"), a Quechua term for a metal pin that women in the Andes use to fasten garments. Tupus have a basic form that consists of a head and stem. There is often wide variation in the head design and decoration. In this case, the head is comprised of a circular shape from which emerge two spirals at top. The spirals are rectangular in cross section and narrow at their ends to a slight point. The overall design of the head is similar to that of Metropolitan Museum of Art 64.228.701. In the latter case, however, a greater length of metal contributes to the spirals at top, and the spirals are more tightly spaced. Furthermore, the latter is significantly larger in total length and width, and there is a perforation in its head. Such a perforation may have been used for threading the tupu onto a cord connecting it with other ornaments, including another tupu (Angélica Casas of Tupe, Peru wears tupus in this wa