This mask depicts Malintzin, also known as Doña Mariña or La Malinche, a historical figure in the Spanish Conquest of Mexico. Malintzin was an Aztec woman who was captured as a child and enslaved by the Maya, who then sold her to Hernán Cortés. With the help of Géronimo de Aguilar, a Spaniard who had learned the Maya language after being shipwrecked, Malintzin served as a … [Read more...] about Masks and Papier-Mâché Angel: Researched and Conserved by Melia Richardson
This Algerian pouring vessel was created and decorated in the tradition of the Kabyle-Berber culture, and it was intended for use in the traditional storage and serving of drinking liquids. Like other Algerian pottery, the vessel was hand-thrown in red terracotta clay and then decorated with colored mineral slips using brushes of goat hair set into wet clay … [Read more...] about Algerian Pouring Vessel: Researched, Conserved, and Reconstructed by Sabrina Osment
These two cylindrical, elaborately beaded forms used as keychain fobs are pieces that actually originate from the beaded handles made for Lakota prayer feathers. Prayer feathers are used in smudging ceremonies, which are often done during healing rituals. In this ceremony, a healer or religious specialist burns a smudge stick … [Read more...] about Beaded Keychain Fobs: Researched, Conserved, and Restored by Lindsey VanDieren