TITLE: Viejo Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Hidalgo and Veracruz
ETHNICITY: Otomí
DESCRIPTION: Viejo (Old Man) Mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX036
MAKER: Ciriaco González (Carpinteros)
CEREMONY: Carnival; Danza de la Conquista
AGE: 1993
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint
The village of Carpinteros is technically in the Mexican state of Hidalgo, but the town has spread into neighboring Veracruz. It is inhabited by both mestizos and the indigenous Otomí people. Like other areas of Mexico, Carpinteros has a tradition of dancing viejo masks representing old men during Carnival and other celebrations. This mask would also be used to represent a Spaniard in the Danza de la Conquista (Dance of the Conquest), portraying the Spanish reconquest of Spain from the Moors.
