c 
163 
COSTUMES 
OF THE 
INDIANS OF MECHOACAN 
PLATES Lll, & LIII. 
The Indians of the provice of Valladolid, the 
ancient kingdom of Mechoacan, are the most 
industrious of New Spain. They have a re- 
markable talent of cutting out small figures in 
wood, and dressing them in clothes made of 
the pith of an aquatic plant. This pith, which 
is very porous, imbibes the most vivid colours ; 
and, if cut spirally, yields pieces of considerable 
dimensions. I brought home for her majesty 
the queen of Prussia, a collection of these In- 
dian figures, arranged with much skill. This 
princess, who united to a great elevation of cha- 
racter an enlightened taste for the arts, ordered 
such as had suffered .the least from carriage to 
be sketched. These drawings are exhibited in 
m2 
