Gabriela Orozco García, 19 years old, puts the final touches on a figure of a Mayan-inspired Nativity scene. The Orozco García family from Antigua Guatemala are renown artisans who produce ceramic Nativity scenes with Mayan attires from all regions of Guatemala.
Here’s your Spanish word of the day: Alfarero or potter. Today I am also sharing the second triptych of the series. Today’s portraits of Nestor, the young potter who specialises in making these beautiful and unique ceramic Nativity scenes. I first shared with you a picture of Nestor and his creating last year with the … Read more
There are three public spring-water pools inside Finca El Pilar. One pool for kids, less than one meter deep, a medium size pool which is about 2 meter deep and a large three-meter deep pool, or tanques, water tanks as they are called there. All three pools are filled once or twice a week completely … Read more
Don’t you wish you can have one these adorable Guatemalan nacimientos (nativity scenes) in your own home for the next Christmas? In my never ending quest to share with you all the different artistic manifestations from Guatemala that I come across I preset you this video clip entitled Tejido audiovisual de Guatemala by Julio Dávila … Read more
On the December 8th, It was Carmen who said, “Baby Jesus was put in his spot within the Nacimiento after we came back from the Misa de Gallo…” in the comments of the entry about the Nacimiento Shrine Niche at Capilla de Belén. Well, I am glad to know that our fellow readers and visitors are eager to fill in all the details and ephemerides that I leave out (out of ignorance). Follow the link if you would like to learn about Nacimientos tradition in Guatemala.
One important aspect of this particular Nacimiento is the fact that Santo Hermano Pedro de Betancourt managed to get himself in the picture of the Nativity shrine. For those who are not well verse in Catholic imagery, myself included, normally the Nativity scene shows Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus along with a few animals. No, Santo Hermano Pedro could not be present there since he was born about 1600 years later, give or take a few moons. Rather, the inclusion of his image, on the right, is to celebrate and to remember that is was Santo Hermano Pedro de Betancourt who introduced the Nacimiento and Posadas to the American Continent, to La Antigua Guatemala if you want to be precise, and from this old town, this celebration was taken to the rest of the continent.