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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY— PUBLICATION NO. 3 



activity, no right or obligation pertaining to the group 

 as a whole, and no internal organization. Further- 

 more, there is no word in use in Moche referring to 

 groups of this sort as discrete, functioning entities, 

 occupying a place in the social organization. In short, 

 there are no symbolic, representational, or ac- 

 tional patterns in the Moche culture which would lead 

 us to see these aggregations as status groups. 



With this somewhat lengthy discussion of the sys- 

 tem set up by baptism, we may pass to a briefer 

 mention of the other types of ceremonial kinship 

 establishment. All of them establislT compadrc re- 

 lationships and extensions of them, although the 

 baptismal compadrcs usually outrank other types in 

 importance. 



If a child falls seriously ill before it has been bap- 

 tized, the father and mother seek a padrino and a 

 madrina and ask them to perform the ceremony of the 

 Aguas dc Socorro. This is a simple emergency af- 

 fair and involves no fiesta. The madrina holds the 

 child, while the padrino baptizes it with holy water 

 (Agua Bendita), a bottle of which is always kept in 

 the house. He simply says, "I baptize you" — giving 

 the child a name suggested by the parents — "in the 

 name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen." 

 The only requirement is that the padrinos themselves 

 be baptized Christians. The purpose of this ceremony 

 is to prevent the child's dying without benefit of the 

 church's blessing (conveyed through the blessed 

 water). If the child recovers, it goes through the 

 regular baptism ceremony, but remains a godchild of 

 the godparents of Aguas dc Socorro, although the 

 formal godfather-godchild relationship usually takes 

 precedence. In any case, the parents and the god- 

 parents are compadrcs. 



Usually when the baby is al^out 2 months old, its 

 nails are cut for the first time. A small fiesta (dc 

 qtiitar uiios) is organized and there is usually only a 

 viadrina, no padrino, whether the baby is male or 

 female. The madrina has to buy a new pair of small 

 nail scissors with which she performs the operation 

 and which are later given to the child. Other persons 

 present may make small presents. 



Between the ages of 2 and 3 years, boy children are 

 supposed to have their first ceremonial haircutting. 

 A padrino and a madrina are chosen. They provide 

 colored ribbons with which the child's hair is tied into 

 small tufts. A fiesta is organized at the expense of 

 the parents, and in the midst of the assembled guests 

 the child, dressed in its best clothes, is set on a stool 

 or chair in front of which is another stool holding a 



plate or mate. Although there are some variations, 

 the padrino is suppossed to deposit a propina (gift or 

 tip) of money in the container, after which he takes 

 the scissors provided by the parents and clips off the a 

 first tuft of hair below the knot of ribbon, so that it 

 remains a loose lock of hair tied with ribbon. He is 

 followed by the madrina, who deposits a similar or 

 smaller gift, and also cuts a tuft of hair (pi. 25, middle 

 (center) ). Then all the guests do likewise, although 

 they are not expected to deposit such large gifts. The [) 

 padrinos are expected to deposit something sizable — 

 5 to 10 soles — the others 50 centavos or 1 sol. In 

 theory, this is supposed to be the child's money to be 

 used for purchase of childhood clothing, now that it 

 has passed from helpless infancy. The theory, at 

 least, is respected, and if the child wishes to play with 

 the money after the haircutting is over the parents, at 

 least in front of the guests, do not prevent it from 

 spilling coins on the floor, bouncing them against the 

 wall, and the like. By the time everyone has sheared 

 a lock of hair, the child has a complete, if uneven hair- 

 cut. The padrinos and guests pin the ribbon-tied 

 locks to their clothes during the fiesta and are sup- 

 posed to take them home as souvenirs. 



The ear-piercing ceremony for girl children takes 

 place at the earliest at the age of about 3 months and 

 sometimes as late as 2 years. Frequently only a 

 madrina is involved, although some parents ask a 

 padrino as well. In the mid.st of the usual fiesta 

 with guests, the madrina opens the ears with a needle 

 and puts a loop of red thread through each lobe. 

 No tips or gifts are involved in this ceremony. About 

 10 or 12 years later the little girl receives her first 

 earrings from the same madrina, an event which is 

 celebrated by another fiesta during which the guests 

 often present the girl with small presents of clothing 

 or ornament. This second ceremony, which is called 

 the jiesta dc aretes (celebration of earrings), might 

 be considered as signalizing the social recognition of 

 the beginning of the status of adolescence for girls. 

 Xot all children are confirmed in church, but when 

 they are they have a padrino and madrina who 

 accompany them to church. The usual type of fiesta 

 takes place after church, although it often involves a 

 combination of several families, each of which is 

 celebrating confirmation of children. The padrinos 

 have the obligation of providing part of the confirma- 

 tion costume. 



A scapular is usually a small bag of cotton con- 

 taining a sacred medal or a relic and provided with 

 a strin? from which it can be hung from the neck. 



