Huichol Woven Designs: Documenting the Encoded Language of an Ancient Mesoamerican Artform
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Research Year:  1996
Culture:  Huichol
Chronology:  Contemporary
Location:  Jalisco, México
Site: San Andrés Cohamiata

Table of Contents

Introduction
About the Research
Conclusion
Appendix of Photographs
Sources Cited

Introduction

The objectives of my project sponsored by the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI), were to record and document Huichol Indian woven designs from the Mexican sierra community of San Andrés Cohamiata, Jalisco, and disseminate the information to scholars, Huichols, and interested general audiences. Huichol Indians, more so than most other indigenous groups in Mesoamerica, have maintained beliefs, customs and traditions with antecedents dating back to pre-Columbian times. Huichol women carry on the ancient art of back-strap loom weaving; a study of their designs is invaluable for gaining greater information, and hence, insights into traditional Mesoamerican cultures. Through their looms, weavers create and recreate a vast repertoire of designs that serve as symbols important to Huichol culture. Weavers from the community of San Andrés Cohamiata have maintained their textile design traditions to a greater degree than other Huichol communities.

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Submitted 09/01/1996 by: