The Straw Man By Mildred Boyd Though everyone calls him the Straw Man, Andres Mendoza is neither a character from The Wizard of Oz nor a fallacious argument set up only to be knocked down. Andres is a gifted, if somewhat unconventional, artist. Instead of brushes and paints he produces his masterpieces with beeswax
Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Dogs, Graves and Scholars The pre-Columbian sites in Western Mexico are never likely to replace Teotihuacan or Monte Alban as tourist attractions. Simple tools, humble dwellings and clay figurines are not much competition for lofty pyramids, princely palaces and golden ornaments. Yet, to serious scholars, such sites are even
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Ancient Gold Compared to the riches of Peru, gold was relatively rare in meso-America and, though quills filled with gold dust were sometimes used as a medium of exchange and the glittering metal was called the “excrement of the gods”, it was far less valued than jade or even plumes
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Potsherds of the Future An archaeologist’s heart may leap up when he beholds a rainbow in the sky, but an ancient garbage dump, the older the better, produces true ecstasy. He joyfully delves into the detritus of long-vanished cultures, not for treasure (although that is occasionally found), but for old
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Posadas, Pastorelas y Piñatas You can always count on the fun-loving Mexicans to get the most out of any fiesta, whether sacred or profane, but they outdo themselves in making the winter holiday season stretch all the way to February. Though many of their customs originate in their own
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd The Men In White Paintings and statues from pre-Columbian times show that the female of the species had to take a back seat when it came to personal adornment. Kings and nobles bedecked themselves in gold, silver and jade in the form of pectorals, armlets, lip plugs and ear
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Our Vanishing Rainforests No matter where they are, all rainforests are in danger of destruction, and with them thousands and thousands of plants, animals, birds and insects will disappear. Mexico’s forests are home to some of the most endangered mammals in America. The tapir, the manatee, as well as
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd Cities of the Gods They are empty and silent now; pale spectres of cities that teemed with life and seethed with color. Once priestly processions moved in solemn splendor across those wide plazas and climbed the steep stairways to make their bloody offerings to the gods while hushed crowds
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Magnificent Mexico By Mildred Boyd The Miracle Workers From pre-Columbian times the peoples of Mexico have been deeply religious. It is not, therefore, surprising that even the poorest village has a church or that many of them should be impressively large and lavishly embellished with gold, silver and statues. Among those there is usually one
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MAGNIFICENT MEXICO By Mildred Boyd Pre-Columbian Deities The ancient Americans, like most primitive societies, worshipped and feared a huge pantheon of powerful beings that controlled every aspect of their lives. If a thing was worth bothering about there was a god for it, including Huixtocihuatl, goddess of salt and Tlatolteotl, goddess of licentiousness!
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