I once read about an Andean myth that tells that the Incan emperor wanted to meet a girl from a village who was desired by all the men of the region. Her parents did not want her to meet the Inca and so they transformed her into a vicuña. Bewitched by her beauty, the Inca would visit her every day, until she was killed by his jealous wife, who turned her skin into a dress. I’d think of this story when I spoke with the vicuñeros, who used a language to describe these creatures that was more befitting a human being than an animal.
