The Meaning of the Altar

Día de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico, Central America, and by many Latinos in the United States. On November 1st and 2nd, spirits of the dead are welcomed back into households with the creation of ofrendas (altars). The holiday's traditions have a long history.

"Ofrenda" means offering. During Day of the Dead, families leave offerings to their deceased loved ones to welcome them home. Each ofrenda is different but there are traditional elements that likely have roots in Mexican and Central American indigenous practices. ​

In 1521, Spain conquered Mexico. The arrival of the Spanish drastically changed the lives of indigenous people. Indigenous religions were made illegal, however many resisted and blended Catholicism and their own beliefs. Indigenous religious traditions continued.  

In pre-Colombian Aztec culture the Zempasúchitl or marigold flower symbolizes death. This is the ‘flor de muerto’ and it is used to decorate ofrenda with its orange and yellow petals and its musky smell. 

Water is placed in the ofrenda in clay pitchers or glasses to quench the thirst of the sprits after their long journey. It also symbolizes the element of life. Some families also place their loved one's favorite drink like soda, milk, café, or chocolate on the ofrenda. 

Water is placed in the ofrenda in clay pitchers or glasses to quench the thirst of the sprits after their long journey. It also symbolizes the element of life. Some families also place their loved one's favorite drink like soda, milk, café, or chocolate on the ofrenda. 

Altares usually contain typical food items such as rice, mole, pumpkin, as well as the fruits of the season. Oranges and apples are widely used for their natural perfume. Some families place their loved ones' favorite foods on the altar so they may enjoy them. 

Pan the muerto is baked only for Day of the Dead and is made to be placed on the ofrendas and graves. It is a sweet bread flavored with anis and orange peel. It’s baked in a round shape like a skull. 

Sugar skulls are decorated with sugar flowers, designs and have, sometimes, the name of the loved one written on the forehead. They represent death and the sweetness of life.

Copal incense comes from the copal tree. It symbolizes the transformation from the physical, the tree, to the supernatural, the perfumed smoke. The rising smoke takes the prayers to the heavens and the gods.

Candles guide and light the path of the spirits to their ofrendas. Candles can come in different sizes depending in the altar is for a child or an adult

Altars hold photographs  los difuntos (the deceased). Some altars have old photographs of family members, recent prints of digital photographs, and even images of deceased pets.

Altars reflect individuals, families, and communities. This altar was created at a Latino Museum Dia de los Muertos Celebration by Frida Larios. Larios created an altar that reflects her Salvadoran indigenous heritage which included a blessing of the four directions. 

Sandra Cisneros created an unconventional altar at the National Museum of American History for her mother. This altar used her mother's bed and many of her favorite things. ​

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Listen to Cisneros describe her artwork. 

Learn how to celebrate  Día de los Muertos and honor your ancestors with the Latino Museum's Day of the Dead Learning Kit.

The welcoming back of the spirits is observed in households with the creation of ofrendas. The quality and degree of ornamentation of the ofrendas depend on regional traditions, family and individual wealth, recent deaths, or the year’s harvest. On the ofrenda, the main objects are symbolic of life’s elements: water, wind, fire, and earth. Water is served in a clay pitcher or glass to quench the spirit’s thirst from their long journey. Fire is signified by the candles that are lit. Wind is signified by papel picado (tissue paper cut-outs). The earth element is represented by food, usually pan de muerto (bread of the dead).  Other offerings include mole, fruit, chocolate, atole, toys, calaveritas de azúcar, and copal incense. 

The Hollywood Forever Oral History Series features the stories of different families explaining the meaning of the elements displayed on their altars. 

“I don’t believe in heaven or hell, I believe you live on in your kids.” –Elvira Cordero Cisneros, mother of Sandra Cisneros.

Ofrenda for Dolores del Rio: This altar by Amalia Mesa-Bains (1984, revised 1991), was on view in the exhibition “Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art” at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Mesa-Bains created this work to honor Dolores del Rio, the Mexican actress who dazzled audiences in the United States and Mexico from the 1920s until her death in 1983.