Photograph of the young girl, La Malinche, in the midst of the Matachine dancers.  12 X 17"  Framed.
Matachines from the Spanish matachin, a sword dancer in a fantastic costume: a member of a society of North and South American-Indian dancers who perform ritual dances. They are found from Peru up to Northern NM where the Spanish first influenced "The New World" and introduced Christianity to the native peoples. Malinche wears a first Holy Communion dress. She is the only female character and the only dancer with no mask, an embodiment of purity and innocence who stands in puzzling contrast with the historic personage (Herman Cortes as his translator and mistress) known in Mexico by the same name.
The Matachina dance, or "Danza de Matachines" (Spanish) is explained by oral tradition amongst most Indian Tribes as "The Dance of the Moors and Christians" and is the first masked dance introduced by the Spaniards. The Moors were driven out of Spain in 1492 and the missionaries introduced the dance to show the superiority of the Christians. The dance was adopted by the people, and today many forms of this dance still exist,Though the dance steps vary amongst tribes the dance formations are all similar. Masks continue to be used, but the style changes from village to village, or tribe.

In addition to this item includes a book, called Nuevo Mexico Profundo: Rituals of an Indo-Hispano Homeland by Miguel Gandert who records in photographs the sacred rituals and dances of the mestizo peoples of the upper Rio Grande in 130 black-and-white photographs. Included are images of the two great Indo-Hispano regional traditions, the Matachines conquest dance drama, complete with monsters and bull, and the multifaceted Comanches celebration, with its equestrian victory play and boisterous dances.
For more information on this book click the link to UNM Press. The book is a publication of the Museum of New Mexico Press.