farfel_n08_147_567-568-569

#567 $5
568 $14
569 $4
Acapulco, Mexico
Apirl, '02

Papel de emate
Bark Paintings (amate) (anciently amatl or huun)
-Mexico

#567 White paper with various bright colors
7 3/4 x 5 3/4"
#568 Brown paper with various bright colors
23 x 15 1/2"
$569 Brown: paper with all blue printign
11 5/8 x 15 1/2"

- Bark paper is still made in the Otomi village
of San Pablito (Puebla), using an ancient pre-
Columbian method made as it was in the 1300's.
- Maya books, codicies, were created by writing
on both sides of a thin sheet of bark, which
was then folded like a concertina. Only 4 have
survived.

- Natura + Otomi Indiana - the 2 largest of
Mexico's indigenous groups.
This bark paper is boiled + soaked over night
until soft enough for the fibers to pull apart. It
is then pounded using a rectangular rock with finger
grooves until the pulp is evenly spread out in the
shape the paper - maker wants.
The color + grain of the paper depends on the bark
used ot make it. Th typical coffee color comes
from the Jonote tree (ficus family), white from
the Xalama Limon, + the silvery beige color from
the Mora (mulberry family)