Before Ajijic and Chapala existed, before the Spanish conquest and Christianity, before the Aztecs came looking for the eagle and the snake bringing the god Huitzilopochtli and the Flower Wars, there was Cosalá.
On the forested shores of the lake, Cosalá—meaning Place of Trees in Náhuatl—had existed for who knows…two thousand years? More? The people sought to manage the conditions of their lives—the rain, the bounty of fish, the yield of the milpas and the fruiting trees—with offerings to the goddess of the lake, Michicihualli—Fish Woman. They made figures and vessels of clay, fired them high enough to resist the water for eternity, and cast them into the lake. Little round-bellied pots an inch and a half high held tears, sweat, and blood from ears pierced with maguey thorns. With the openings sealed, with cord through their little handles, they were gathered in clusters, “nests,” and given to the goddess.
To Cosalá, the Spanish added the name San Juan. They demolished the temple and built a church with the stones. The encomienda system made slaves of the people and dispersed some to San Andres Ajijic (Place of the Spring)—a Christian add-on that didn’t stick—and beyond around the lake. The old worship was forced out.
The people of San Juan Cosalá always knew the statues and vessels were in the lake. You would step on them if you waded in, and when the lake was low the vessels were like stones on the exposed lake bottom. When expats from the north and from Europe began to discover the perfection of the climate and the beauty of Lake Chapala, the people of San Juan Cosalá found that there was money to be made by selling the clay offerings to them. Collectors gathered at the zalate de los monos, a colossal Ficus now gone, where thousands of pieces were dispersed before a sense of heritage reasserted itself but awaken that sense did.
Ysidro Xilonzochitl says he was about 15 when he came up from the lake carrying a large sack of clay offerings he had dug from the muck. A foreign woman had given him five pesos for the prize find of the day—a beautifully detailed statue of some notable—and he hauled the rest to the house where he was being raised by his grandmother. That night, sick with fever, intense dreams changed the direction of his life. He saw spirits clustering around him and demanding over and over “Why are you doing this? Why are you doing this?” He knew the beings meant that the offerings in the lake must be respected, preserved, not sold, never sold.
A few steps from Ysidro lived a playmate who grew up to become his partner in preservation of Cosalá heritage. Agustín Vasquez Calvario, known as the proprietor of the Viva México restaurant and generous supporter of anyone whose circumstances leave them hungry, has formed a collective with Ysidro: Colores que dan vida. Ysidro has organized the children of the pueblo to decorate all the telephone poles in town with “colores,” colorful and fantastic images. He teaches painting and drawing and has now embarked on a project to install on San Juan Cosalá’s fine malecon, replicas—enormous replicas—of some of the small lake treasures which are guarded in his home, in Agustín’s, and in those of many other residents.
The Facebook page, ‘Espacio de arte y cultura Xilotl “Vos al Viento”’ has pictures of the unveiling of an impressive, nearly seven-foot cement statue of the Vos. There are now three installations beside it: an offering pot, a xoloitzcuintli dog, a male figure with a heavy load. Twelve are planned.
Ysidro works with ten other artists and assistants, among them the iron worker who builds the armature and the movers who manage the placement of the hundreds of pounds of statuary. Fifty thousand pesos makes the creation of each piece dedicated to the donor possible. A visit to the San Juan Cosalá malecon to see the growing outdoor museum, a meal at Viva México… You won’t find a more delicious and significant Mexican experience. Ysidro and Agustín also hope someday to see funding for a museum space to display the unique Cosalá offerings. Anyone considering local philanthropy might be inspired by the pride with which the village guards its heritage as the original lake settlement.
Agustín Vasquez Calvario’s
Email: aguscosala@gmail.com
- Encounters With History - October 29, 2024
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Thanks, Carolyn, for bringing this story to light. Isidro is looking for a patron to pay for the creation of the next statue!!! Contact him on Facebook or at 331 013 3995. Better yet, go see his studio gallery a half block west of Viva Mexico on Porfirio Diaz street in San Juan Cosala.