THE TAJIN TOTONAC PART 1 KELLY AND PALERM 



235 



ventionalized human figures seem to be rather recent and 

 limited to what might be called the P6rez Reyes school. 



One mantel, woven during our stay, has a plant motif 

 (fig. 59, I). Another design, (fig. 59, m), is not readily 

 identifiable; it may have been inspired by the double- 

 headed eagle (cf. fig. 60, ;', k). 



Bird figures are popular (fig. 60; table 13) but, for the 

 most part, the more elaborate designs are old. In some 

 cases, a simplification of the older motifs is evident ; for 

 example, figure 60, e and g, found only among newer tex- 

 tiles, apparently are derived from figure 60, c. 



Other animal forms are shown in figure 61. Again, the 

 more elaborate patterns (fig. 61, c, e, f, m) tend to occur 

 among the textiles woven some years ago (table 13). 



In summary, there seems to be a certain time 

 difference in the ornament of manteles. Border 

 treatment differs ; filler motifs are entirely distinct. 

 Moreover, there have been shifts in major motifs. 

 Some of the older designs apparently have been 

 abandoned ; others have been modified ; and a num- 

 ber of new design elements evidently have been 

 introduced. 



It seems probable that, as a whole, these designs 

 are to be considered European. Embroidery pro- 

 duced by the Totonac during the late nineteenth 

 century certainly seems to be European-inspired 

 and, as noted above, even the technique of produc- 

 ing designs by raising the weft to form a pile, 

 probably is of Spanish introduction (ftn. 23, p. 

 227 ) . In short, presumably we are dealing largely 

 with European traits — perhaps introduced long 

 ago — but traits which have been revamped in the 

 local milieu. 



FRINGE 



All but 2 of our 22 manteles have the warp ends 

 tied in fringe, at least at the end where the weav- 

 ing terminates. At the initial end, one specimen 

 (No. 19) has no loose warps. Most have them 

 simply gathered in small clusters and twisted to 

 form threads of several strands, which are not 

 knotted. 



However, at the terminal end, the fringe may 

 be quite elaborate (pi. 31 ; fig. 62). Several adja- 

 cent warps are handled as if they were a single 

 thread, being tied in groups of two (fig. 02, a, b) 

 or of four (fig. 62, c-g) . Rarely is more than one 

 kind of knot found on the same specimen 

 (table 13). 



The various clusters of warps are tied close to the 

 fabric. Then the strands are divided; half are 

 passed diagonally to the left, and half to the right, 



where they are tied anew, with strands from ad- 

 jacent knots; the result is a sort of lattice work 

 (pi. 31). As a rule, the same knot is repeated 

 throughout. In one case, the same knot (fig. 62, g) 

 has been repeated several times, without dividing 

 the warps, and thus forms a series of strips (pi. 31, 

 e) which resemble work generally known in Mex- 

 ico as macrame. Occasionally, separate miniature 

 tassels give a finishing touch to the fringe (pi. 31, 

 a, <?, d) . 



In addition to the specimens listed in table 13, knots 

 e and / of figure 62 sometimes appear on textiles other 

 than manteles. We have five ruedos, all tied with e (one 

 each by Ignacia Hernandez, Carmen Perez Reyes, and 

 Marl" a Loreto, and two by Luz Valencia ) . Two specimens 

 woven by Luz Valencia are too wide to fall within the 

 typical ruedo group, and one informant suggests they 

 might be considered towels (toallas) ; both are knotted 

 with e. In addition, three coladeras have knotted fringe ; 

 one, by Luz Valencia, has knot e ; two, by Carmen Perez 

 Reyes, knot /. 



Of the various knots shown in figure 62, there seem to 

 be marked individual preferences; out of the total of 

 seven, no weaver seems to employ more than three, d 

 is particularly favored by Ignacia Hernandez, who how- 

 ever, has used e on a specimen not included in the table. 

 Carmen P6rez Reyes uses d and f on manteles, e on an 

 unlisted ruedo, and / on two coladeras. She appears to 

 favor f, and both specimens made by her two daughters 

 likewise show this same knot. Maria Antonia M6ndez 

 uses a, f, and g, while Nicolasa de Leon employs chiefly 

 the latter ; in once case, she has combined it with b. 



In our small sample of 22 pieces, a, c, and e are con- 

 fined to the older specimens ; b and /, to the newer ones ; 

 d and g appear in both lots. 



EMBROIDERY 



A few decades ago, Totonac women wore elab- 

 orately embroidered costumes ; today, embroidered 

 blouses, and sometimes skirts, are popular, espe- 

 ci ally for fiesta wear. At present, only the decora- 

 tive aspect will be considered; a discussion of 

 clothing in general will be reserved for Part 2 of 

 this monograph. 



Some of the embroidered skirts made and worn 

 by Totonac women during the latter yeai's of the 

 nineteenth century and the early years of the pres- 

 ent, are extremely handsome. They are simple, 

 sacklike affairs, open at top and bottom ; most are 

 of commercial muslin, but an occasional one is 

 hand-loomed. Embroidery is particularly heavy 

 about the bottom but usually extends, although less 

 densely, over most of the skirt. The few examples 



