Jack Nelson on wed 18 oct 00
Every year in October DIF, a Mexican government agency runs a craft
competition and sale here in the state of Chiapas. Artesanos from all
over Chiapas compete and the quality level is very high. I missed
last year's show because I was out of town (I run a travel guide
service here), but I made a point of seeing this year's show so that
I could meet the artesans and then later visit them in their villages
The show is for all sorts of artesania, including textiles, ironwork,
woodwork, carving, mask making and lacquer, but I'll concentrate on
the pottery here. There were some fantastic pots, from very big (3.5
feet high) ceremonial pots on down through small decorative pieces.
Prizes were given in two categories: Ceremonial and Utilitarian. You
may have heard of Amatenango, it is the most famous of the towns in
Chiapas that produces pottery. They make a lot of decorative pots
there because of the tourist that visit. What surprised me was the
quality and quantity of pots from villages that I had no idea had a
pottery tradition. These pots were mostly utilitarian or ceremonial,
not too much decorative work done in these villages (no tourists).
All of the indigenous pottery in Chiapas is hand built and almost al
of it is wood fired. The firing method varies from field firing to
pit firing to primitive kilns. The pots are unglazed but sometimes
covered with slips. Some pots are burnished to give them a sheen.
Some are very polished looking and some are very crude. Some potters
use shapes that are traditional for their villages and actually
pre-hispanic in origin. Some look as if they could have come out of
an archeological dig.
If you'd like to see pictures of these pots check out my web page:
And if anyone wants to know more about pottery (or anything for that
matter) in Chiapas, drop me a line.
Jack Nel;son
Mexiculture
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