The locals call it Aldama , preferring to honor the Mexican Revolutionary War hero Juan Aldama , rather than the saint name imposed by Spanish conquerors. They are revolutionaries themselves here with most of the village sympathizing with the Zapatista movement. They are also extraordinary weavers of traditional huipiles and finely woven agave bags.
The largest and finest bags take three months to make. The gala, celebratory fiesta huipil, made on the backstrap loom using supplementary weft technique to create the designs, can take eight months to weave. As we climb the winding mountain road, we pass through Chamula territory where women are wearing the traditional wooly black skirts and men sport wooly white tunics and white hats.
At the Y in the road we divert left. To continue right would take us to Chenalho and Chalchihuitan. As we climb, the mist thickens and droplets cover the windshield of our van. We are covered as if by a shroud.
This is territory where wool and heavily woven cotton offer protection from the chill. In Aldama, women become weaving masters by age twelve. Their designs are mathematic. They count the warp threads. Dream their designs. Wrestle with design problems as they sleep. Wrestle with angels. The designs talk to them through Santa Marta, Magdalena and Maria. The patterns that emerge are magical and surrealistic.
Lady Xoc appears as a figure hidden in cloth, transferred from the frescoes at Yaxchilan. Triangles represent the universe. Frogs symbolize the coming of rain. The diamond contains a sacred sense of location. Put your head through the opening of the huipil and the wearer is at the center of the universe. The symbol of the sunrise is a syncretic symbol of the birth of Jesus. Corn plants tell us the story of the dry season and also of fertility.
