durable art

Artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association create an original mask that blends elements of both Maya and Aztec art and culture. The face depicts the Sun Jaguar of the underworld seen in an incense burner from the Classic Maya site of Palenque. The mouth makes reference to Chac, the Maya rain god. Covered with skulls, the headdress is an interpretation of the Aztec tzompantli, a rack where the heads of sacrificial victims were displayed as an offering to the gods.

Legend tells how Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, created the human race. However, in doing so, he had to confront Mictlantecuhtli, the god of death. Inspired by this story, artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association create an original mask that is faithful to Mexico's ancient books and archaeological record.

Drawing on a lifelong study of Mexico's pre-Hispanic cultures, artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association create a mask of their own design. It depicts a personage wearing a feathered headdress surrounded by small human skulls. "This mask is based on the cult of death," the artisans say. "In the month of August, the Aztecs celebrated the festival of the dead when loved ones were honored and remembered. It was called Miccailhuitonitli."

A skull represents the spirit of a warrior sacrificed to Aztec deities. It emerges from the helmet of the renowned jaguar warriors, an elite infantry comprised of pre-Hispanic noblemen. Working in ceramic, artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association design and create an original mask that is faithful to Mexico's ancient historical record.

Artisans from the Angel Cerón Artisan Association are inspired by the concept of duality in Aztec spirituality and art for the design of this mask. "Existential duality between life and death is at the root of all conflict within oneself, and in relationship with others. We are born with both impulses, that of living and evolving, and that of dying," explain the Mexican artisans. Experts in pre-Hispanic art, the artisans craft a ceramic mask in which the green side of the face symbolizes life, and the other represents a skull. An ornate headdress with serpents, an eagle and two suns underscore the divine theme of this mask.