Admire the Maya

With these words, Anne Maudslay described in her book "A Glimpse at Guatemala" the wonder at the sight of native costumes in the highlands of that country. She liked them so much, that she tried several times to buy some, although she always found difficulties to do so.

In Mesoamerica, textiles were made from cotton in backstrap looms that women wrapped around their waist. Textiles could also be made of barkcloth or animal skin.

In addition to these textiles, the people from the elite wore elaborate ornamentation that complemented their dress.

Shell, obtained from the Pacific and the Caribbean, was a common material for ornaments too. The red coloured Spondylus princeps was one of the most valued shells.

Although the body is mostly eroded, in this relief of House C from the Palace in Palenque you can appreciate one of these large headdresses.

The hair, always tidy, was groomed with resin or other binding products. The stepped appearance was one of the most common hairstyles, accomplished by shaving the sides.

The body was decorated too. Sometimes body painting transformed the skin. Other times it was a more permanent modification, in the form of scars resulting from the cutting or branding of the skin, known as scarifications.

After the Conquest, the Maya area continued to be important for their textile production. During the nineteenth century the Yucatan peninsula flourished thanks to the production of henequén, an agave fibre used to make a wide range of cloths.

Nowadays, the Maya population uses traditional dress as a means of identity construction.

Although backstrap looms are still in use, floor looms have been incorporated in the elaboration of indigenous textiles.