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166-473: The Lacandon escaped Spanish control throughout the colonial era by living in small, remote farming communities in the jungles of what is now Chiapas and the Guatemalan department of El Petén , avoiding contact with whites and Ladinos . Lacandon customs remain close to those of their pre-Columbian Mesoamerican ancestors. As recently as the late 19th century some bound the heads of infants, resulting in

332-759: A horticulture degree in 1918, Blom attended a school for social work in Zurich. There she became a member of the Socialist Party and developed an interest in journalism and politics. She left school and traveled throughout Europe, speaking and organizing on behalf of the Socialist Party. In 1925 she married Kurt Düby (1900–1951). Her marriage ended a few years later when Blom moved to Germany to report on Adolf Hitler and growing Nazi brutality for Swiss newspapers. Working as an anti-fascist organizer, speaker, and journalist led Blom to Paris, where she joined

498-638: A meridian drawn from the Arctic Pole to the Antarctic , at a distance of 370 leagues (1,800 km) west of Cape Verde . Spain received the lands west of this line. The known means of measuring longitude were so inexact that the line of demarcation could not in practice be determined, subjecting the treaty to diverse interpretations. Both the Portuguese claim to Brazil and the Spanish claim to

664-692: A Rain forest reserve, preventing areas of the Lacandón Jungle from being used by logging companies. However, after gaining control of the local extension of the Florida-based logging company Weiss Fricker Mahogany Company, the Mexican government organization Nacional Financiera, S.A. (NAFINSA), which controlled the revenue generated by logging in the Lacandón Jungle. A state-controlled company, the Compañia Forestal de la Lacandon S.A.,

830-486: A base for conquering much of Ecuador and Chile . Central Colombia , home of the Muisca was conquered by licentiate Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada , and its northern regions were explored by Rodrigo de Bastidas , Alonso de Ojeda , Juan de la Cosa , Pedro de Heredia and others. For southwestern Colombia, Bolivia , and Argentina , conquistadors from Peru combined parties with other conquistadors arriving more directly from

996-488: A core) would first be heated and then bone is struck with a round hammerstone (made of volcanic rock) against the core, using indirect percussion fragments were chipped off to make prismatic chert blades. A hammerstone (probably imported from the Guatemalan highlands) was also found nearby the chert fragments. The stone was identified as being a hammerstone because of its smooth and rounded from use and fits comfortably in

1162-449: A diverse food supply and healthy diet. The primary or old growth forest consists of small portions of tropical rain forest and lower mountainous rain forest, which constitutes the majority of the forest ecosystem. While the growth in this type of rainforest is not quite as tall as that seen in a tropical rainforest, the two largely share the same characteristics (see interactive map at and map at). The primary growth forest provides hunting for

1328-522: A fact which was facilitated largely by the geographical setting in which they lived. The geography led many to be discouraged from venturing into the Lacandón lands, and the result was that the Lacandón people were never completely “conquered” as was the case with other indigenous groups in Mesoamerica . The rugged terrain and thick forests which characterize the Lacandón lands in the eastern sector of

1494-399: A fire starter traditionally consisting of a fire drill (two sticks) and more recently a lighter, matches or flint; benches to sit around; ceramic bowls for preparing and eating ritual meals or offerings; a conch shell “trumpet” to announce the beginning of a ceremony for both villagers and the gods; a large hollowed trough to make the alcohol Balché for ritual consumption; and most importantly

1660-601: A free conquistador with the Spaniards to fight the Maya in Yucatán in 1540. After the conquests he settled in the city of Mérida in the newly formed colony of Yucatán with his family. In 1574, the Spanish crown ordered that all slaves and free blacks in the colony had to pay a tribute to the crown. However, Toral wrote in protest of the tax based on his services during his conquests. The Spanish king responded that Toral need not pay

1826-457: A god pot became full with incense, burnt offerings, or was broken, there would be a renewal ceremony to replace it. The old pot would be taken to a sacred place and left and then new ceramic incense burners and figurines were made (usually to be discarded later) as they created a new pot to take the place of the old. Offerings burnt in the God pots included incense, food, and rubber figurines. The food

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1992-417: A government minister to let her join a Chiapas expedition going in search of the legendary and rarely photographed Lacandon Maya. Blom later credited her attractive appearance and the camera she wore around her neck for her place on this first official Lacandon expedition, which was to be conducted on horseback. Blom had never ridden a horse before. Not only did Blom become an expert horsewoman, photograph

2158-424: A government social worker to study and report on the working conditions of Mexican women. Later, while researching women who had fought as zapatistas with Emiliano Zapata 's revolutionary army, Blom bought her first camera to help document her work. In 1943, influenced by the adventures of French anthropologist Jacques Soustelle , whose book on jungle exploration she had read on the boat to Mexico, Blom convinced

2324-621: A high degree of social disruption. The southern group abandoned their pantheon of gods in the 1950s and were later Christianized through the efforts of the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL). Southern Lacandon helped SIL missionaries translate the New Testament and parts of the Old Testament into their language. But in the north the spiritual leader Chan K'in, who lived to an advanced age and died in 1996, helped keep

2490-571: A husband. Women who travelled thus include María de Escobar, María Estrada , Marina Vélez de Ortega, Marina de la Caballería, Francisca de Valenzuela, Catalina de Salazar. Some conquistadors married Native American women or had illegitimate children. European young men enlisted in the army because it was one way out of poverty. Catholic priests instructed the soldiers in mathematics, writing, theology, Latin, Greek, and history, and wrote letters and official documents for them. King's army officers taught military arts. An uneducated young recruit could become

2656-407: A large amount of mango and banana trees, which are also non-native, which were planted by the Lacandón as a source of food. Beneath the jungle floor laid hundreds of artifacts including pottery, stone tools, metal pots and broken glass to name a few. Some of the artifacts were brought up by root action or a metal detector located and others were found from blind digs. The abundance of artifacts suggests

2822-451: A manufacturing site or even a sacred place of disposal. Conquistador Conquistadors ( / k ɒ n ˈ k ( w ) ɪ s t ə d ɔːr z / , US also /- ˈ k iː s -, k ɒ ŋ ˈ -/ ) or conquistadores ( Spanish: [koŋkistaˈðoɾes] ; Portuguese: [kõkiʃtɐˈðoɾɨʃ, kõkistɐˈdoɾis] ; lit 'conquerors') is the term used to refer to Spanish and Portuguese soldiers and explorers who carried out

2988-527: A massive scale, the Lacandon came into contact often with forest workers, which resulted in wage work for some and an overall transformation of their culture, a process that continues to the present time. As development in the area took place, the Catholic Church established mission churches which converted many Lacandon. The Lacandon were drawn into the revolt of indigenous peoples that took place in

3154-419: A military leader, elected by their fellow professional soldiers, perhaps based on merit. Others were born into hidalgo families, and as such they were members of the Spanish nobility with some studies but without economic resources. Even some rich nobility families' members became soldiers or missionaries, but mostly not the firstborn heirs. The two most famous conquistadors were Hernán Cortés who conquered

3320-421: A milpa, however, the land will be replanted with trees and allowed to develop into a mature secondary forest (at least 20 years), at which time it will be used as a milpa again. The third zone, as mentioned above, is the acahual. The Lacandón farmers replant the milpa in tree crops such as rubber or fruit and reap the direct benefits from the plants. The Lacandón also use the acahual as a type of hunting ground, as

3486-462: A monetary economy because of tourists has decreased the need for subsistence agriculture and with it the religious rites associated with agriculture. Other changes include the simplification of god pot designs, the non-existence of once very important pilgrimages to particular sites (because they have been desecrated), disappearance of bloodletting, and rarity of polygyny. Besides the influence of outsiders, these changes can also be attributed to deaths of

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3652-413: A picture was taken, Blom often lost interest or forgot to develop prints. In the early 1970s the direction of Blom's life changed yet again. She had become increasingly disturbed by the systematic deforestation of La Selva Lacandona by loggers, immigrant settlers, the petroleum industry, and the Mexican government. Blom decided she must speak out, and thus became one of the first environmental activists of

3818-438: A project sponsored by The Center for Documentary Studies, Duke University . Reina de la Selva , a film of Blom's life in which she appears, was made by Robert Cozens in 1989. Blom died at age 92. She was buried next to Frans Blom in the municipal cemetery of San Cristobal de Las Casas. In 2011, the remains of Frans and Gertrude Blom were disinterred and transported to the jungle village of Naha, Chiapas where Blom had kept

3984-580: A religious homogeneity. The 1492 discovery of the New World by Spain rendered desirable a delimitation of the Spanish and Portuguese spheres of exploration, thus dividing the world into two areas of exploration and colonization. This was settled by the Treaty of Tordesillas (7 June 1494) which modified the delimitation authorized by Pope Alexander VI in two bulls issued on 4 May 1493. The treaty gave to Portugal all lands which might be discovered east of

4150-675: A result of his expedition, the 1529 Diego Ribeiro world map outlined the East coast of North America almost perfectly. The Spaniard Cabeza de Vaca was the leader of the Narváez expedition of 600 men that between 1527 and 1535 explored the mainland of North America. From Tampa Bay, Florida , on 15 April 1528, they marched through Florida. Traveling mostly on foot, they crossed Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, and Mexican states of Tamaulipas , Nuevo León and Coahuila . After several months of fighting native inhabitants through wilderness and swamp ,

4316-688: A series of discussions and debates among the Bishops of the Dominican and Franciscan orders. The two orders had very different approaches to the conversion of the Indians. The Franciscans used a method of mass conversion, sometimes baptizing many thousands of Indians in a day. This method was championed by prominent Franciscans such as Toribio de Benavente . The conquistadors took many different roles, including religious leader, harem keeper, King or Emperor, deserter and Native American warrior. Caramuru

4482-540: A series of statements of their principles, each called a "Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle ". Casa Na Bolom in San Cristóbal de las Casas is devoted to helping the Lacandon cope with the changes imposed on them in recent decades. A scientific and cultural institute, it was founded in 1951 by archaeologist Frans Blom and his wife, photographer Gertrude "Trudi" Duby Blom . Casa Na Bolom ("House of

4648-677: A slaved domestic servant in Puebla, Mexico. In 1533, Juan Valiente made a deal with his owner to allow him to be a conquistador for four years with the agreement that all earnings would come back to Alonso. He fought for many years in Chile and Peru. By 1540, he was a captain, horseman, and partner in Pedro de Valdivia's company in Chile. He was later awarded an estate in Santiago; a city he would help Valdivia found. Both Alonso and Valiente tried to contact

4814-539: A small contingent to find it. With the guidance of Hopi Indians, Cárdenas and his men became the first outsiders to see the Grand Canyon. However, Cárdenas was reportedly unimpressed with the canyon, assuming the width of the Colorado River at six feet (1.8 m) and estimating 300-foot-tall (91 m) rock formations to be the size of a person. After unsuccessfully attempting to descend to the river, they left

4980-453: A type of protein supplement to their diet. In addition, the shells from this organism provide great nutritional value, as they provide calcium and lime when burned. The lime is then added to maize to release amino acids such as tryptophan and lysine and the vitamin niacin, which would otherwise be unavailable from the maize (unable to be metabolized) if the lime were not added. By utilizing the primary forest, milpas, acahuales and aquatic areas,

5146-495: Is a god but do not feel he is worthy of worship as he is a minor god. Most Lacandon villages have a God House where ceremonies take place. Some are located near the religious leaders abode or close to the home of a well-respected or elderly male. Some villages hide the God House away from the village in the jungle so that outsiders are unable to find them. Often these sites are also guarded and even shielded with vegetation so that

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5312-530: Is a research and cultural center devoted to the protection and preservation of the Lacandon Maya and La Selva Lacandona rain forest . Gertrude Blom was born in the Swiss Alps, in the canton of Bern , Switzerland. She grew up in the village of Wimmis, where her father Otto Lörtscher was a minister and much of her childhood play was influenced by the wild west tales of Karl May . After completing

5478-438: Is an egalitarian society as far as leadership. Ceremonies usually have only male participants and are for a myriad of reasons including; feeding a particular god, a fertility rite, to help with agriculture, and frequently in response to illness. As contact from outsiders increased so did the occurrence of disease among the Lacandón, and with that more rituals focused on healing. The prominence of particular Gods also increased with

5644-455: Is evident between the Lacandon in lowland Chiapas near the Maya ruins of Bonampak and Yaxchilán and the highland Lacandón who reside closer to Lakes Naja and Metzabok within the jungle (see map at). Lacandon who reside in the southern part of the Chiapas jungle have been more exposed to outsiders, are more aggressive than their highland counterparts, have slightly different dress, and adopted

5810-411: Is now planned. Several linguists and anthropologists have done extensive studies of Lacandon language and culture, including Phillip Baer, a missionary linguist with Summer Institute of Linguistics who lived among the Lacandon for more than 50 years, Roberto Bruce an American linguist who devoted his life to studying Lacandon language and culture, and Christian Rätsch who spent three years living with

5976-709: Is now the southern and western United States , and from Mexico sailing the Pacific Ocean to the Spanish East Indies . Other conquistadors took over the Inca Empire after crossing the Isthmus of Panama and sailing the Pacific to northern Peru . From 1532 to 1572, Francisco Pizarro succeeded in subduing this empire in a manner similar to Cortés. Subsequently, other conquistadores used Peru as

6142-460: Is that the Lacandon are not an entirely homogeneous group, which has created difficulties for ethnographers in understanding the religious practices of the Lacandon both past and present. Significant differences may be found in ritual behavior related to geographic differences of Lacandon villages. Lacandon villages are small and dispersed throughout the jungle in Chiapas . A further geographic divide

6308-442: Is the god of rain and is therefore very important to the Lacandón. Mensäbäk can be traced back to the pre-Hispanic Maya god Yum Chac, who is also a god associated with rainfall. There are also gods associated with thunder and lightning (Hahanak'uh), earthquakes (Kisin), and war and disease (Ak K'ak'). Inexplicably, the Lacandon seem to have no maize deity, a deity which is present among all other Mayan groups. More recently, Äkyantho',

6474-453: Is the presence of non-native vegetation such as fruit trees. Another being traditional Lacandón pottery. The ceramic vessels found at all of the sites were dark brown and black with dark clouding on both the inside and outside and had a hemispherical shape. The hemispherical shape mimicked the familiar shape of the gourd vessels that were also very important. The gourds had a practical form and were used often for ritual food and drink. The rims of

6640-634: Is today Panama, reaching Inca territory by 1526. After one more expedition in 1529, Pizarro received royal approval to conquer the region and be its viceroy. The approval read: "In July 1529 the queen of Spain signed a charter allowing Pizarro to conquer the Inca. Pizarro was named governor and captain of all conquests in New Castile." The Viceroyalty of Peru was established in 1542, encompassing all Spanish holdings in South America. In early 1536,

6806-678: The Aztec Empire and Francisco Pizarro who led the conquest of the Inca Empire . They were second cousins born in Extremadura , where many of the Spanish conquerors were born. Catholic religious orders that participated and supported the exploration, evangelizing and pacifying, were mostly Dominicans , Carmelites , Franciscans and Jesuits , for example Francis Xavier , Bartolomé de Las Casas , Eusebio Kino , Juan de Palafox y Mendoza or Gaspar da Cruz . In 1536, Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas went to Oaxaca to participate in

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6972-577: The Campeche and Petén regions of what is now Mexico and Guatemala and moved into the Lacandon rainforest at the end of the 18th century, a thousand years after the Classic Maya civilization collapsed. Unlike other indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica , though, they were not strongly affected by outside forces until the 19th century. While other Indians were living under the control of the Spanish ,

7138-564: The Governor of Cuba Hernando de Soto . Dávila made an agreement with Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro , which brought about the discovery of Peru, but withdrew in 1526 for a small compensation, having lost confidence in the outcome. In 1526 Dávila was superseded as Governor of Panama by Pedro de los Ríos , but became governor in 1527 of León in Nicaragua. An expedition commanded by Pizarro and his brothers explored south from what

7304-503: The Paraná River . In 1517, Francisco Hernández de Córdoba sailed from Cuba in search of slaves along the coast of Yucatán . The expedition returned to Cuba to report on the discovery of this new land. After receiving notice from Juan de Grijalva of gold in the area of what is now Tabasco , the governor of Cuba , Diego de Velasquez , sent a larger force than had previously sailed, and appointed Cortés as Captain-General of

7470-597: The Persian Gulf , the East Indies , and East Africa ; and Filipe de Brito e Nicote who led conquests into Burma . Portugal established a route to China in the early 16th century, sending ships via the southern coast of Africa and founding numerous coastal enclaves along the route. Following the discovery in 1492 by Spaniards of the New World with Italian explorer Christopher Columbus ' first voyage there and

7636-536: The 1520s and 1530s. Granted a house plot in Mexico City, he raised a family there, working at times as a guard and town crier. He claimed to have been the first person to plant wheat in Mexico. Sebastian Toral was an African slave and one of the first black conquistadors in the New World. While a slave, he went with his Spanish owner on a campaign. He was able to earn his freedom during this service. He continued as

7802-459: The 15th century, Portuguese explorers sailed the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts for tradable commodities such as firearms, spices, silver, gold, and slaves crossing Africa and India. In 1434 the first consignment of slaves was brought to Lisbon ; slave trading was the most profitable branch of Portuguese commerce until the Indian subcontinent was reached. Due to the importation of

7968-680: The Adelantado of Canary Islands , Pedro Fernández de Lugo , arrived to Santa Marta , a city founded in 1525 by Rodrigo de Bastidas in modern-day Colombia, as governor. After some expeditions to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta , Fernández de Lugo sent an expedition to the interior of the territory, initially looking for a land path to Peru following the Magdalena River . This expedition was commanded by Licentiate Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada , who ended up discovering and conquering

8134-676: The Americas. After Mexico fell, Hernán Cortés's enemies Bishop Fonseca , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar , Diego Columbus and Francisco Garay were mentioned in Cortés' fourth letter to the King in which he describes himself as the victim of a conspiracy. Infante Dom Henry the Navigator of Portugal, son of King João I , became the main sponsor of exploration travels. In 1415, Portugal conquered Ceuta , its first overseas colony. Throughout

8300-506: The Americas. The predisposition inspired a lot of the entradas to seek slaves as part of the conquest. After his father's death in 1479, Ferdinand II of Aragón married Isabella I of Castile , unifying both kingdoms and creating the Kingdom of Spain . He later tried to incorporate the kingdom of Portugal by marriage. Notably, Isabella supported Columbus' first voyage that launched the Spanish conquistadors into action. The Iberian Peninsula

8466-566: The Armada. Cortés then applied all of his funds, mortgaged his estates and borrowed from merchants and friends to outfit his ships. Velásquez may have contributed to the effort, but the government of Spain offered no financial support. Pedro Arias Dávila , Governor of the Island La Española was descended from a converso 's family. In 1519 Dávila founded Darién , then in 1524 he founded Panama City and moved his capital there laying

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8632-463: The Aztecs, the slow progression of conquest, erection of towns, and cultural dominance over the natives brought more Spanish troops and support to modern-day Mexico. As trading routes over the seas were established by the works of Columbus, Magellan, and Elcano, land support system was established as the trails of Cortés' conquest to the capital. Human infections gained worldwide transmission vectors for

8798-730: The Caribbean and Río de la Plata - Paraguay respectively. These conquests founded the basis for modern Hispanic America and the Hispanosphere . Spanish conquistadors also made significant explorations into the Amazon Jungle , Patagonia , the interior of North America , and the discovery and exploration of the Pacific Ocean. Conquistadors founded numerous cities, some of them in locations with pre-existing settlements, such as Cusco and Mexico City . Conquistadors in

8964-638: The Castilian Crown. For example, Ioánnis Fokás (known as Juan de Fuca) was a Castilian of Greek origin who discovered the strait that bears his name between Vancouver Island and Washington state in 1592. German-born Nikolaus Federmann , Hispanicised as Nicolás de Federmán, was a conquistador in Venezuela and Colombia. The Venetian Sebastiano Caboto was Sebastián Caboto, Georg von Speyer Hispanicised as Jorge de la Espira, Eusebio Francesco Chini Hispanicised as Eusebio Kino , Wenceslaus Linck

9130-471: The Christian faith more quickly. When contacts between Europeans and the Lacandon began being recorded it was believed that they were unchanged ancient Maya descended from those who fled initial Spanish contact and that they were complete with the ritual beliefs and physical appearance of their ancestors. The Lacandon refer to themselves as Hach Winik, or “real people” and report that they are descendants of

9296-711: The Colorado River, sailed up the Gulf of California and a short distance into the river's delta. The Basques were fur trading, fishing cod and whaling in Terranova ( Labrador and Newfoundland ) in 1520, and in Iceland by at least the early 17th century. They established whaling stations at the former, mainly in Red Bay , and probably established some in the latter as well. In Terranova they hunted bowheads and right whales , while in Iceland they appear to have only hunted

9462-567: The God House contains rubber characters, incense nodules (made of copal ), and ceramic God pots used to burn the offerings for the rituals. Sacred places included caves (where the sun went to the underworld each night), Maya ruins where the Gods had once resided, next to rivers, rock outcroppings or particular places in the jungle (there would not be any cutting of vegetation in these areas). These places are often remote, secret, and not to be viewed by outsiders. God pots are small ceramic bowls that have

9628-858: The Gulf of California coast to what is now Sinaloa , Mexico, over a period of roughly eight years. They spent years enslaved by the Ananarivo of the Louisiana Gulf Islands . Later they were enslaved by the Hans , the Capoques and others. In 1534 they escaped into the American interior, contacting other Native American tribes along the way. Only four men, Cabeza de Vaca, Andrés Dorantes de Carranza , Alonso del Castillo Maldonado , and an enslaved Moroccan Berber named Estevanico , survived and escaped to reach Mexico City . In 1539, Estevanico

9794-739: The Incan silver mines, Potosí was the most important site in Colonial Spanish America, located in the current department of Potosí in Bolivia and it was the location of the Spanish colonial mint. The first settlement in the way was the fort of Sancti Spiritu , established in 1527 next to the Paraná River . Buenos Aires was established in 1536, establishing the Governorate of the Río de la Plata . Africans were also conquistadors in

9960-477: The Jaguar") does advocacy work for the Lacandón, sponsors research on their history and culture, returns to them copies of photographs and other cultural documentation done by scholars over the years, and addresses environmental threats to the Lacandon Jungle, such as deforestation. Among its many projects, Casa Na Bolom has collaborated with a group of Swedish ethnomusicology students who recorded traditional Lacandón songs. A publication of those recordings in CD form

10126-427: The Lacandon lived independently deep in the tropical forest. Their independence allowed them to manage their contact with the outside world in a controlled way. Preserving their ethnic identity was not as effortless, though. The Lacandon deliberately remained in small, isolated groups in order to resist change. They used their inaccessibility and dispersed settlement pattern to protect their traditions. Outsiders avoided

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10292-522: The Lacandon region for centuries due to frightening legends about the dense tropical forest. The Spanish—and later the Mexicans, after they gained their independence—sometimes made efforts to settle the region, but failed due to the lack of financial and political support. For generations the only connections the Lacandon had to the outside world came through trade. The Lacandon “often initiated [trade and] sought metal tools, salt, cloth, and other European goods”. Outsiders, for their part, also desired goods from

10458-477: The Lacandon while studying their spells and incantations . The first definite contact with the Lacandons occurred in the last decades of the 18th century. When scholars first investigated in the early 20th century, they thought that the Lacandon were the direct descendants of ancient Classic Maya people who fled into the rainforest at the time of the Spanish Conquest and remained linguistically and culturally pristine ever since. They made that assumption because

10624-430: The Lacandon, and write a book about the 1943 expedition, she found in the Lacandon Mayan people and their jungle home her life's avocation . Later that year, on a second expedition to visit another Lacandon settlement, she met Frans Blom , a Danish archeologist and cartographer who was in the jungle searching for the Mayan ruin of Bonampak . They teamed up on several subsequent jungle explorations, which later provided

10790-424: The Lacandons' physical appearance and dress is so similar to the way the ancient Maya portrayed themselves in their murals and relief carvings. Scholars were also impressed by the fact that “the Lacandon resided near the remote ruins of ancient Mayan cities, had the knowledge to survive in the tropical jungle, and were neither Christian nor modernized”. They thought that these native people were pure Maya untouched by

10956-410: The Lacandón adversely, it presented an opportunity for them to gain. Lacandón men would dedicate a good amount of their free time towards manufacturing arts and crafts, and then selling their goods to tourists in the larger towns in Chiapas, like Palenque . In 1980, a road was built to connect Palenque with the Lacandón community of Nahá. This allowed tourist traffic to flow into Lacandón communities, and

11122-441: The Lacandón for a long time. The Lacandón have sometimes gone into nearby towns to participate in Catholic mass or other rituals performed by priests. The ritual of baptism was of particular interest, possibly because they perceived a cleansing and therapeutic value for that ritual. Initially, attempts by capuchin priests and other missionaries to Christianize the Lacandón were unsuccessful. The priests repeatedly tried to emphasize

11288-532: The Lacandón had with the outside world at the time. They traded animals, honey, beeswax, tobacco, cotton, and cacao for much-needed metal tools. As time progressed into the 19th and 20h centuries, the goods the Lacandón were given during trade became more advanced, such as firearms, kerosene, coffee, sugar, and clothing among other things. There is evidence that showed that some Lacandón kept regular trade with ranches in Chiapas, and through contact learned languages such as Spanish, Ch'ol , and Tzeltal Maya. This allowed

11454-448: The Lacandón have been able to provide a healthy diet for themselves which has contributed to their ongoing survival. Three sites have been excavated and yielded artifacts that are historically Lacandón, El Caobal, Matamangos and El Magal. The location of these abandoned Lacandón sites have been passed down through generations of fathers taking their sons to the sites for hunting or exploring. The locals who had traveled there as children are

11620-404: The Lacandón have used specific agricultural, hunting and gathering techniques which have been designed to be conservative of the land and ecozone as a whole, which allows for sustainable use and therefore continued yield in the future. 20% of the approximately 700 Lacandón people living today continue to use such techniques. James Nations recognizes four zones which the Lacandón utilize to maintain

11786-405: The Lacandón historically though these practices were non-existent or unknown by the 20th century. Other practices may have included ancestor worship as god pots and incense burners have been found at burial sites. Reports of cremation burials (Baer and Baer, 1952) exist as well as ritual links to astronomy and dream interpretation. Not much is known about these practices. A specific belief regarding

11952-433: The Lacandón merchant selling material goods no longer had to travel for days, but rather set up his shop along the road, and could carry more items with the advent of vehicular travel in the area. One of the biggest items sold to tourists are hunting kits - bows and arrows. Men making these bows and arrows transitioned from acquiring the materials from the jungle themselves, to just buying the materials and focused strictly on

12118-415: The Lacandón subsistence. They started raising chickens, cultivating oranges, plantains, sugar cane, and instead of hunting with bows and arrows, were hunting with rifles. Some Lacandón would gain employment from Ladinos in logging camps, and others would receive payment from logging camps for rights to log in their jungle. By the end of the 19th century and beginning of the twentieth, tourists would come to

12284-426: The Lacandón to more easily understand Tzeltal Maya culture and Christianity. To the Lacandón, trade with foreigners was the most vital, and once only way for them to come into contact with the outside world, and for them to obtain things that they themselves cannot produce. Throughout time one can see the advancement of technology reaching the Lacandón. The increased trade in the 19th century also influenced change in

12450-418: The Lacandón villages and purchase material items like gourd bowls, bows, and arrowheads. As other indigenous people were given land in the Lacandón Jungle, the common practice of subsistence farming was replaced by semi commercial agriculture of the new people that were given land in the area. This was further influenced by the national government's encouragement of the development of commercial farming, and not

12616-431: The Lacandón were often the initiators of contact with foreigners (including other Mayan groups). Outside contact was usually facilitated by trade and religious conversion. If we examine photographs and drawings of the Lacandón dating from the late 19th century, we can see that their clothing and personal adornments have changed considerably. These valuable historical images show that cultural change has been taking place among

12782-448: The Lacandón, as deer, peccary , agouti , and monkeys inhabit the area. The Lacandón also utilize the many different plant species in the rainforest for various purposes, including dietary and medicinal; the medicinal use of plants is well-developed amongst the Lacandón and is important in their culture. This zone is also very important for the maintenance of rich and stable soil, of which the Lacandón take advantage in their milpa systems,

12948-442: The Maya. While the Lacandon share a history with the Maya, many of their religious practices are not found among the ancient Maya or other Maya groups. The Lacandon may identify a particular man in a village who has shown extensive ritual knowledge or ability as a healer or religious leader who then performs religious ceremonies. However, basic offerings and incense burning is performed by all male heads of household and generally theirs

13114-519: The Moluccas depended on the treaty. It was particularly valuable to the Portuguese as a recognition of their new-found, particularly when, in 1497–1499, Vasco da Gama completed the voyage to India. Later, when Spain established a route to the Indies from the west, Portugal arranged a second treaty, the Treaty of Zaragoza . Sevilla la Nueva , established in 1509, was the first Spanish settlement on

13280-680: The Muslims back to Granada, which was the Muslims' last control of the Iberian Peninsula. The marriage between Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabel of Castile resulted in joint rule by the spouses of the two kingdoms, honoured as the "Catholic Monarchs" by Pope Alexander VI. Together, the Crown Kings saw about the fall of Granada, victory over the Muslim minority, and expulsion or forcibly converted Jews and non-Christians to turn Iberia into

13446-525: The ancient traditions alive. Chan K'in urged his people to maintain a respectful distance from the outside world, taking some things of value, but not allowing outside influences to overwhelm the Lacandon way of life. The Lacandon speak a Mayan language closely related to Yucatec Maya . In their own language they call themselves Hach Winik ("Real People", pronounced [ʜatʃʰ ʋinikʰ] ) and they call their language Hach T'ana ("Real Language"). The Lacandón have long been traders with other Maya in

13612-451: The animals discussed above frequent the acahaul to graze or eat. The last major zone in the Lacandón lands is that which is near water, such as river banks, stream beds, swamps, and shorelines. The aquatic areas provide the Lacandón with additional sources of protein and a different nutrient base from that which is provided by the terrestrial zones. The people use a specific type of snail species ( Pachychilus spp.) known locally as t’unu as

13778-580: The area and have adopted some words of Ch'ol and Tzeltal into their lexicon. They have also created their own unique styles of speaking Spanish in some cases. Details of the language of the northern group of Lacandon can be found at the Lacandon Cultural Heritage website. Lacandon interaction with the outside world has accelerated over the past 30 years. In the 1970s, the Mexican government began paying them for rights to log timber in their forests, bringing them into closer contact with

13944-500: The area in the 1980s and 1990s. They endured the pressure of cultural change as never before in their history. Their strategy of many generations to withdraw into the forest to preserve their traditional way of life now failed them. In 1971 a Mexican presidential order turned 614,000 hectares over to the Lacandon Community , thereby recognizing the land rights of this relatively small group of indigenous forest dwellers over

14110-615: The area, defeated by the difficult terrain and torrid weather. Gertrude Blom Gertrude "Trudi" Duby Blom (born Gertrude Elisabeth Lörtscher; July 7, 1901 – December 23, 1993)  was a Swiss journalist , social anthropologist , and documentary photographer who spent five decades chronicling the Mayan cultures of Chiapas , Mexico, particularly the culture of the Lacandon Maya. In later life, she also became an environmental activist. Blom's former home Casa Na Bolom

14276-857: The basis for the exploration of South America's west coast and the subsequent conquest of Peru . Dávila was a soldier in wars against Moors at Granada in Spain, and in North Africa, under Pedro Navarro intervening in the Conquest of Oran . At the age of nearly seventy years he was made commander in 1514 by Ferdinand of the largest Spanish expedition. Dávila sent Gil González Dávila to explore northward, and Pedro de Alvarado to explore Guatemala . In 1524 he sent another expedition with Francisco Hernández de Córdoba , executed there in 1526 by Dávila, by then aged over 85. Dávila's daughters married Rodrigo de Contreras and conquistador of Florida and Mississippi,

14442-437: The battlefield but also to serve as interpreters, informants, servants, teachers, physicians, and scribes. India Catalina and Malintzin were Native American women slaves who were forced to work for the Spaniards. Castilian law prohibited foreigners and non-Catholics from settling in the New World. However, not all conquistadors were Castilian. Many foreigners Hispanicised their names and/or converted to Catholicism to serve

14608-412: The belief of the Lacandón entailed the Gods being able to partake in the offerings in the God pot by the figurine being burned in the God pot and becoming a messenger for the particular God invoked. The smoke of the offering was seen as the essence, or soul (pixan) which is consumable by the gods. Ultimately, there is not a great understanding of the exact meaning of the anthropomorphic rubber figures though

14774-409: The bowl and protruding spikes. These vessels were used in “God houses” for religious purposes. During the Lacandón incense burner renewal ceremony men isolated themselves from the community and crafted the burners in solitude. They were placed in the god house and the old burners were deposited at a sacred place in the forest. The presence of these incense burners points possibly to a religious god house,

14940-538: The building and grounds and renamed it Casa Na Bolom , or House of the Jaguar. To support the household and Frans' Mayan studies, the Bloms took in paying guests for meals. Eventually, Casa Na Bolom evolved into an inn attracting visitors from all over the world, including archeologists from major American universities and guests as notable as Diego Rivera , François Mitterrand , Helen Hayes , and Henry Kissinger . For

15106-527: The capital of the Aztec Empire. The fall of Tenochtitlan marks the beginning of Spanish rule in central Mexico, and they established their capital of Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was one of the most significant events in world history. In 1516, Juan Díaz de Solís , discovered the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and

15272-400: The ceramic vessels were squared off, as if they had been cut with a knife before being fired. Unlike Lacandón gourd bowls, which were typically decorated with carved designs, the ceramic vessels had no designs or adornments. This might have shown some insight as to why they were left behind, perhaps they were so simple and easily produced that they were left behind and new vessels were made after

15438-501: The coming burn from catching other parts of the forest on fire. The firing occurs in April and planting begins soon thereafter. Different crops are grown together in the milpa amongst each other, such that plants of a single crop are separated from one another and surrounded by different crops. Also, tree species (bananas, plantains, etc.) are interspersed amongst maize and vine plants such as squash and chiles, and root crops are cultivated in

15604-634: The conquests and explorations of the Age of Discovery . Conquistadors sailed beyond the Iberian Peninsula to the Americas , Oceania , Africa and Asia , establishing new colonies and trade routes . They brought much of the " New World " under the dominion of Spain and Portugal. After Christopher Columbus ' arrival in the West Indies in 1492, the Spanish, usually led by hidalgos from

15770-440: The distinctively shaped foreheads seen in Classic Maya art . And well into the 20th century, they continued using bows and arrows and making arrowheads from flint they quarried in the rainforest. Today they sell versions of these to tourists. Until the mid-20th century the Lacandon had little contact with the outside world. They worshiped their own pantheon of gods and goddesses in small huts set aside for religious worship at

15936-470: The early 16th century. It is also important to recognize that while the Lacandon are culturally conservative, they were never isolationist as they had continued contact and trade with other Native Mesoamericans throughout their history. However, the Lacandon have been very secretive about their religious rituals throughout ethnographic history, which has led to many mysteries about the meanings and origins of certain rituals and beliefs. Another problem to consider

16102-475: The early conquest campaigns in the Caribbean and Mexico. In the 1500s there were enslaved black and free black sailors on Spanish ships crossing the Atlantic and developing new routes of conquest and trade in the Americas. After 1521, the wealth and credit generated by the acquisition of the Aztec Empire funded auxiliary forces of black conquistadors that could number as many as five hundred. Spaniards recognized

16268-552: The eastern Chiapas region, such as the Pasión , San Pedro Martir , Lacantún , Jataté , Usumacinta , and Chixoy . The rivers, along with many lakes, swamps and shorelines, contribute to the diversity of the Lacandón lands. The availability of various types of flora and fauna which inhabit these aquatic and terrestrial areas have allowed the Lacandón to thrive in a geographical setting which at first glance appears to be hostile to humans. In order to take full advantage of their resources,

16434-401: The edge of their villages. These sacred structures contain a shelf of clay incense burners, each decorated with the face of a Lacandon deity. The Lacandon also made pilgrimages to ancient Maya cities to pray and to remove stone pebbles from the ruins for ritual purposes. They believe that the Maya sites are places where their gods once dwelled before moving to new domains they constructed in

16600-432: The elders and knowledgeable persons who practiced the rituals through old age and often disease. Information was not passed on to younger generations, which opened a place for Christian missionaries to convert more Lacandón. For this reason Protestantism is the dominant religion of the lowland Lacandón today. John McGee (2002) has noted that within four years of the introduction of television, traditional ritual practices among

16766-441: The exhaustive process and knowledge base of preparing ritual foods for ceremonies. Because of this, and their exclusion from the traditional ceremonies other than cooking, many Lacandón women asked their husbands to convert to Christianity. As mentioned earlier, the geographic differences among the Lacandón may have influenced the rate at which Christian conversion occurred. It is noted that the lowland Lacandón have all but abandoned

16932-435: The first Adelantado of Cuba , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar founded the island's first Spanish settlement at Baracoa; other towns soon followed, including Havana , which was founded in 1515. After he pacified Hispaniola , where the native Indians had revolted against the administration of governor Nicolás de Ovando , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar led the conquest of Cuba in 1511 under orders from Viceroy Diego Columbus and

17098-490: The first circumnavigation of the world by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, expeditions led by conquistadors in the 16th century established trading routes linking Europe with all these areas. The Age of Discovery was hallmarked in 1519, shortly after the European discovery of the Americas, when Hernán Cortés began his conquest of the Aztec Empire. As the Spaniards, motivated by gold and fame, established relations and war with

17264-590: The first time: from Africa and Eurasia to the Americas and vice versa . The spread of Old World diseases , including smallpox , influenza , and typhus , led to the deaths of many indigenous inhabitants of the New World . In the 16th century, perhaps 240,000 Spaniards entered American ports. By the late 16th century, gold and silver imports from the Americas provided one-fifth of Spain's total budget. Contrary to popular belief, many conquistadors were not trained warriors, but mostly artisans, lesser nobility or farmers seeking an opportunity to advance themselves in

17430-434: The forest, such as timber, animal skins, and fruits. Although trade was slow and infrequent, it did take place and it allowed for an intermingling of culture and material goods. In the 19th century, outsiders looked toward the forest for valuable timber and new lands for farming. As the 19th century progressed, farmers and ranchers invaded the area, and the Lacandon withdrew farther into the forest, losing more and more land on

17596-425: The forest. There was a blending of cultural elements as some traits of varied origin were retained while others were lost. The Lacandon seem to have arisen as a distinct ethnic group as late as the 18th century, meaning that they “cannot be the direct descendants of the ancient Maya since their culture did not exist before it was generated through inter-indigenous interaction”. The Lacandon seem to have originated in

17762-430: The god Akyantho’ is that he had first given the Lacandón tools, medicine, animals, liquor, and other trade associated items but then took them away and gave them to foreigners because they were taking better care of these items. As a punishment for their irresponsibility, the Lacandón had to interact with the foreigners in order to obtain what they needed. In addition, the Lacandón believed that their Gods had once dwelled in

17928-504: The god of foreigners, has become more prominent. This god, Äkyantho', is described as a light-skinned god that wears a hat and carries a pistol. Äkyantho' is responsible for trade, medicine, diseases, some animals (horses for example), and metal tools. He has a son named Hesuklistos (Jesus Christ) who is supposed to be the god of the foreigners. This is expressive of the Lacandón cultural conservatism and adaptability, in that they fit new gods into their world view. They recognize that Hesuklistos

18094-535: The ground under these. Plants are harvested in November or December after the rainy season which begins in May or June. This cycle will be repeated for 2 to 5 years, at which time the milpa will be replanted with trees and allowed to be repopulated with wild forest plant species (this zone is then referred to as an acahual ). After 5 to 7 years, the land will be used as a milpa again. After this second period of time used as

18260-459: The grounds of Na Bolom, she started El Vivero, a tree nursery which has distributed thousands of free trees for reforestation . In her essay The Jungle is Burning , Blom writes "If mankind continues abusing the planet as we are today, the effects in the near future will be far worse than the devastation that would be caused by any atomic bomb." In 1983 Blom oversaw the first published collection of her photographs Gertrude Blom - Bearing Witness,

18426-424: The hand and has scratches and chips from use. The uncovering of these related artifacts suggests possibly a tool manufacturing area or a discard site. Known as El Mangal or “place of many mango trees” by the locals, this site has trees that were much larger than those at Caobal or Matamangos. The area also had a lagoon that was known on regional maps as “El Mangal” (showing a knowledge of the area by people other than

18592-430: The head and face of the deity they represent attached to the rim of the pot, often with the head tilted back so that incense or offerings may be placed directly on it. These pots are fired in the open and coated with a mixture of clay, lime, and water and then painted with red or black dyes. The pots have specific masculine or feminine designs including whether the head had straight (male) or braided (female) hair and whether

18758-490: The highland Lacandón has been reduced to just two families and one individual. Many others no longer participate in any religion at this point. The historic Lacandón were neither strictly hunter-gatherers nor swidden agriculturalists, but rather, they were both as they saw fit. Likewise, they were at one time either mobile or sedentary. The Lacandón would make clearings in the forest to raise crops and some livestock, but they would also hunt and fish, and gather roots and plants in

18924-588: The historical religion while those in the highlands still practice some traditional rituals. The need for privacy for the rites to be performed and outsider interruption likely has something to do with this as well. The use of music and dance has also decreased in ritual behavior inexplicably since ethnographers began studying the Lacandón. Today, it is possible to buy god pots made by the Lacandón specifically for tourists. These pots are not painted and have not been given “souls” and therefore are not alive and can be sold. Jon McGee (2002) notes that increased participation in

19090-404: The importance of monogamy in their religion, which may have led to the initial general non-acceptance of the religion. Polygyny was seen by the male Lacandón as a way to ensure labor and economic power, retain ritual knowledge in food preparation, and maintain fertility among wives at different times. The Christian religion provided somewhat of a break for Lacandón women because there was no need for

19256-523: The indigenous Muisca , and establishing the New Kingdom of Granada , which almost two centuries would be a viceroyalty. Jiménez de Quesada also founded the capital of Colombia, Santafé de Bogotá . Juan Díaz de Solís arrived again to the renamed Río de la Plata , literally river of the silver, after the Incan conquest. He sought a way to transport the Potosi's silver to Europe. For a long time due to

19422-414: The influx of outsiders including a God the Lacandon recognize specifically for foreigners among other things. Lacandon deities include K’akoch, the god responsible for the creation of earth, sun, and other gods (who came from the flower of the bak nikte' Plumeria rubra ); K’akoch does not interact with humans. Sukunkyum is held to be the first god to come from the bak nikte' and is reportedly in charge of

19588-401: The international movement against Hitler's Germany. In 1939, after Blom was arrested and deported back to Switzerland, she planned to travel to New York and raise funds for war refugees, but a sudden change of heart led her to join the mass emigration of pacifists, communists, labor leaders, artists and Jews welcomed to Mexico by President Lázaro Cárdenas . In Mexico City, Blom was hired as

19754-471: The island of Jamaica , which the Spaniards called Isla de Santiago . The capital was in an unhealthy location and consequently moved around 1534 to the place they called "Villa de Santiago de la Vega", later named Spanish Town , in present-day Saint Catherine Parish . After first landing on " Guanahani " in the Bahamas , Columbus found the island which he called "Isla Juana", later named Cuba. In 1511,

19920-410: The jungle. As such, they had no need for a structured economy, as they relied on their own homesteads as their source of sustenance. The more contact that the Lacandón had with other people, the more their economy morphed. The historic Lacandón would at times trade with outsiders, but there is little to no documentation regarding this contact. What trade was documented showed that it was the most contact

20086-478: The jungles to perform their rituals privately. Didier Boremanse, in the book South and Meso-American Native Spirituality , gives some detailed accounts of specific rituals that he witnessed (pp. 324–351). While the Lacandón have recently seen an influx of outside influence with the coming of roads, logging, tourism, and other modernizations, it is important to recognize that they have had contact with outsiders throughout their history. It should also be noted that

20252-484: The last informants who know the location of the Lacandón settlements. Since the Lacandón did not typically build “stone-and-earth” platforms it is almost impossible to find their lost settlements, making the knowledge of the elder locals crucial. Each site yielded different artifacts, some proved evidence of a home or residences, others may have been manufacturing sites. All show strong evidence of Lacandón inhabitance. The easiest characteristic of Lacandón settlement to spot

20418-663: The latter. The Spanish fishery in Terranova declined over conflicts between Spain and other European powers during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. In 1524, the Portuguese Estêvão Gomes , who had sailed in Ferdinand Magellan 's fleet, explored Nova Scotia, sailing South through Maine, where he entered New York Harbor and the Hudson River and eventually reached Florida in August 1525. As

20584-527: The locals). The water in the lagoon is not good for drinking or cooking but it useful for washing and catching fish. A current family has made residence at El Mangal and has unearthed a whole machete, they also found pieces of thick, hard, brown pottery (traditional Lacandón ceramic). While digging a trash pit the family found more pottery, although it was not the traditional smooth bowls that had been found at El Caobal, they were still ethnographically Lacandón. The vessels were identified as incense burners. The shape

20750-432: The location a home or possibly a discard zone. The local artifacts that were found included utilitarian ceramics and stone tools, imported items consisted of white earthenware vessels with painted designs, glass bottles and metal tools. At Matamangos, the site approximately one kilometer from El Caobal is identified by its abundance of mango trees (again showing that non-indigenous vegetation points to settlement). Matamangos

20916-420: The material for a two-volume study La Selva Lacandona. By 1951, Frans and Gertrude Blom had married. To be closer to the jungle, they moved from Mexico City to San Cristóbal de las Casas , Chiapas. With an inheritance from Frans' mother, the Bloms purchased a neoclassical building on the outskirts of San Cristóbal de las Casas. It was built in 1891 and was originally intended to be a seminary. They restored

21082-568: The more numerous settlers, who had been encouraged to colonize the Lacandon Forest under previous government policies. But this did not put an end to the Lacandons' troubles. Ironically, this effort to save Lacandon culture resulted in enduring tensions between the Lacandon and their neighbors. Throughout their history the ritual practices and beliefs of the Lacandon have shifted and evolved. Change has seemed more explicit as contact with

21248-475: The national economy. At the same time, the government built roads into the area, establishing new villages of Tzeltal and Ch'ol Indians who were far more exposed to the outside world than the Lacandon. The roads helped expand farming and logging, and severe deforestation occurred. Then, in the early 1990s, the Lacandon witnessed acts of violence during the Zapatista rebellion in Chiapas. The Zapatistas issued

21414-778: The new world since they had limited opportunities in Spain. A few also had crude firearms known as arquebuses . Their units ( compañia ) would often specialize in forms of combat that required long periods of training that were too costly for informal groups. Their armies were mostly composed of Spanish troops, as well as soldiers from other parts of Europe and Africa. Native allied troops were largely infantry equipped with armament and armour that varied geographically. Some groups consisted of young men without military experience, Catholic clergy who helped with administrative duties, and soldiers with military training. These native forces often included African slaves and Native Americans, some of whom were also slaves. They were not only made to fight in

21580-411: The next 12 years, until Frans Blom's death in 1963, the Bloms shared a passion for expeditions in search of Mayan ruins. On these trips and sometimes as a paid jungle guide for others, Gertrude Blom continued photographing the Mayan people. She had little interest in the technical side of photography. Blom considered her camera a tool for documenting the people and culture of a rapidly changing place. Once

21746-476: The northern lands of New Spain in 1540–1542. Francisco Vázquez de Coronado reached Quivira in central Kansas. Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo explored the western coastline of Alta California in 1542–1543. Vázquez de Coronado's 1540–1542 expedition began as a search for the fabled Cities of Gold, but after learning from natives in New Mexico of a large river to the west, he sent García López de Cárdenas to lead

21912-492: The northwest of Hispaniola . Juan Ponce de León equipped three ships with at least 200 men at his own expense and set out from Puerto Rico on 4 March 1513 to Florida and surrounding coastal area. Another early motive was the search for the Seven Cities of Gold , or "Cibola", rumoured to have been built by Native Americans somewhere in the desert Southwest. In 1536 Francisco de Ulloa , the first documented European to reach

22078-604: The other to make an agreement about Valiente's manumission and send Alonso his awarded money. They were never able to reach each other and Valiente died in 1553 in the Battle of Tucapel. Other black conquistadors include Pedro Fulupo, Juan Bardales, Antonio Pérez, and Juan Portugués. Pedro Fulupo was a black slave that fought in Costa Rica. Juan Bardales was an African slave that fought in Honduras and Panama. For his service he

22244-421: The outside world has increased. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge the differences between Lacandon religious practices prior to increased contact (19th century) and those afterwards. As a culturally conservative group of Native Mesoamericans, the Lacandon have maintained characteristics unique to themselves, including certain religious customs, despite the encroachment and influence of the outside world since

22410-527: The outside world. But in recent years researchers have revealed a more complex history for the Lacandon. Scholars have now shown that the Lacandon are the result of a coming together of various lowland Mayan refugee groups during the period of Spanish colonial rule . Their “language, clothing, and customs derive from several different Colonial Era Mayan ethnic groups”. It appears that the Lacandon possess multiple origins and that their culture arose as different lowland Mayan groups escaped Spanish rule and fled into

22576-512: The party reached Apalachee Bay with 242 men. They believed they were near other Spaniards in Mexico, but there was in fact 1500 miles of coast between them. They followed the coast westward, until they reached the mouth of the Mississippi River near to Galveston Island . Later they were enslaved for a few years by various Native American tribes of the upper Gulf Coast . They continued through Coahuila and Nueva Vizcaya ; then down

22742-464: The periphery of their territory. The Lacandon survived outright conquest, though, by adopting a flexible strategy that led them to accept, resist, or retreat from the imposing foreign culture depending on the circumstances. By the late 20th century, though, the Lacandon were in frequent contact with outsiders within the area that had been their heartland. This resulted in territorial shifts, disease, and new powerful cultural influences. As logging began on

22908-469: The pot was striped (male) or checked (female). In addition, pots used for rituals are considered to be alive and to have a soul. To bring life to a God pot the Lacandón would use small pebbles they found at Maya ruins that they considered sacred. They would also use cacao beans for the purpose of giving the pot a “heart”. Each God pot was made for a particular deity or ritual and if they remained in good condition they sometimes were given from father to son. When

23074-506: The present-day Mexican state of Chiapas (see map at) acted somewhat as a barrier to social interaction outside of the small and dispersed groups in which the Lacandón lived from pre-Conquest times up to the 20th century. The southern Maya lowlands which are home to the Lacandón are characterized by rugged karstic topography and sub-tropical rainforest, known as the Selva Lacandona , or the Lacandon Forest. Several rivers feed into

23240-541: The production of the bows and arrows. These are usually sold at the Maya ruins at Palenque and range in sizes - from full adult sizes to child-sized toys kits. The historical Lacandón needed to rely on only themselves. But as they came into contact with other people, and Mexico became a more unified state, their economy shifted towards a more dependent one, thriving on increased trade with other local people and eventually were introduced with international trade. The Lacandón became associated as being isolated from other groups,

23406-452: The rituals performed inside cannot be seen. The God House is built very low to the ground so that it is hard to see into and it is oriented to North, South, East, and West with the entrance on the east side where it faces toward Maya ruins and the sunrise. Inside the God House are the necessities used for various ceremonies. These include drums suspended in the ceiling so they don't touch the ground until they are needed for ritual song and dance;

23572-405: The ruins along with their ancestors. Many rituals were performed at these sites as evidenced by the numerous god pots found throughout. Breaking any of the rocks or damaging the buildings of the ruins was seen as disrespecting the Gods. Often these places were guarded but the increasing interruption of ceremonies along with the damaging of the sites and the god pots there forced the Lacandón back into

23738-538: The second zone. The milpa, or farmed field, is crucial to the survival of the Lacandón people. Here, they utilize sustainable slash and burn techniques to ensure the continued richness of the soils of the milpa and health of the region in general. The Lacandón people engage in swidden agriculture on a primary or secondary growth forest in January, February or March, and allow the remains to dry until April. During this time, fire breaks are also put into place so as to keep

23904-660: The service of the Portuguese Crown led numerous conquests and visits in the name of the Portuguese Empire across South America and Africa , going "anticlockwise" along the continent's coast right up to the Red Sea , as well as commercial colonies in Asia, founding the origins of modern Portuguese-speaking world . Notable Portuguese conquistadors include Afonso de Albuquerque who led conquests across India ,

24070-406: The sky and below the earth. The Maya site of Bonampak , famous for its preserved temple murals, became known to the outside world when Lacandóns led American photographer Giles Healy there in 1946. A few Lacandon continue their traditional religious practices today, especially in the north around Lakes Naja and Mensabok. In the south, a yellow fever epidemic in the 1940s took many lives and caused

24236-580: The slaves as early as 1441, the kingdom of Portugal was able to establish a number of population of slaves throughout the Iberia due to its slave markets' dominance within Europe. Before the Age of Conquest began, the continental Europe already associated darker skin color with slave-class, attributing to the slaves of African origins. This sentiment traveled with the conquistadors when they began their explorations into

24402-409: The smoke of the burning blood. Other beliefs, which signify a potential history of human sacrifice, include some Gods preferring human flesh and sacrificing other Gods and also that at the end of the world the Gods would sacrifice humans and would paint their houses with the blood of the humans. The behavior of the Gods being similar to that of humans may point toward cannibalism and human sacrifice among

24568-417: The symbolism appears to be representative of human sacrifice. It is known that the rubber figures would be splattered with red annatto dye before being burnt and that at sometime before the 19th century it was common for the Lacandón to participate in bloodletting where they would cut their earlobe or septum and smear the figurine with blood before burning it. The belief was that the God could be sustained from

24734-495: The tax because of his service. Toral died a veteran of three transatlantic voyages and two Conquest expeditions, a man who had successfully petitioned the great Spanish King, walked the streets of Lisbon, Seville, and Mexico City, and helped found a capital city in the Americas. Juan Valiente was born in West Africa and purchased by Portuguese traders from African slavers. Around 1530 he was purchased by Alonso Valiente to be

24900-429: The tribe migrated to a new location. The first site discovered near the ruins of Dos Pilas was El Caobal, located on raised terrain and surrounded by swamp. In Spanish, caobal means “place or abundance of mahogany trees,” this refers to the large concentration of them which most likely due to planting by the Lacandón who relied on them for canoes and also because mahogany trees are not indigenous. El Caobal also has

25066-495: The twentieth century. On her own, she made lecture tours with slide shows of her documentary photographs, traveling in Mexico, the United States, Germany and Switzerland to raise awareness of the irreparable damage being done to the jungle. She wrote hundreds of articles in three different languages protesting Mexican policies. Blom appeared on Mexican television shows and lobbied Mexican government officials. In 1975, within

25232-475: The typical slash and burn practices that were historically common in the area. In addition to that, rapid deforestation of the Lacandón Jungle due to cattle grazing led the Lacandón to move from their dispersed settlements to more centralized communities, thus shifting their economic practices. In the early 1970s, oil developments in Tabasco put money into Chiapas, and allowed for the Mexican government to set up

25398-453: The underworld and judging people's souls; Sukunkyum tends to the sun (when it disappears into the west) and the moon (during the day). Hachäkyum is the younger brother of Sukunkyum; he is the most important deity because he created the jungle, animals, and man and woman (with the help of his wife). In the generation below Hachakyum, there are various mediating gods, such as his son Tuub (T'up) and his son-in-law Ah Kin ('Priest') Chob. Mensäbäk

25564-586: The value of these fighters. One of the black conquistadors who fought against the Aztecs and survived the destruction of their empire was Juan Garrido . Born in Africa, Garrido lived as a young slave in Portugal before being sold to a Spaniard and acquiring his freedom fighting in the conquests of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and other islands. He fought as a free servant or auxiliary, participating in Spanish expeditions to other parts of Mexico (including Baja California) in

25730-461: The west and south of Spain, began building a colonial empire in the Caribbean using colonies such as Santo Domingo , Cuba , and Puerto Rico as their main bases. From 1519 to 1521, Hernán Cortés led the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire , ruled by Moctezuma II . From the territories of the Aztec Empire , conquistadors expanded Spanish rule to northern Central America and parts of what

25896-840: Was Wenceslao Linck, Ferdinand Konščak , was Fernando Consag, Amerigo Vespucci was Américo Vespucio, and the Portuguese Aleixo Garcia was known as Alejo García in the Castilian army. The origin of many people in mixed expeditions was not always distinguished. Various occupations, such as sailors, fishermen, soldiers and nobles employed different languages (even from unrelated language groups), so that crew and settlers of Iberian empires recorded as Galicians from Spain were actually using Portuguese, Basque, Catalan, Italian and Languedoc languages, which were wrongly identified. Castilian law banned Spanish women from travelling to America unless they were married and accompanied by

26062-580: Was a Portuguese settler in the Tupinambá Indians. Gonzalo Guerrero was a Maya war leader for Nachan Can, Lord of Chactemal . Gerónimo de Aguilar , who had taken holy orders in his native Spain, was captured by Maya lords too, and later was a soldier with Hernán Cortés. Francisco Pizarro had children with more than 40 women, many of whom were ñusta . The chroniclers Pedro Cieza de León , Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés , Diego Durán , Juan de Castellanos and friar Pedro Simón wrote about

26228-427: Was also on slightly raised ground and was located near a small group of Maya house mounds. After deciding to dig near one of the largest mango trees large amounts of chert debris such as chert cores, arrowheads and small blades were uncovered, another object that is characteristically Lacandón. Chert was a hard stone that the Lacandón used to make arrowheads and other lithic tools. A large piece of chert (also called

26394-538: Was appointed governor of the island. As governor he authorized expeditions to explore lands further west, including the 1517 Francisco Hernández de Córdoba expedition to Yucatán . Diego Velázquez , ordered expeditions, one led by his nephew, Juan de Grijalva , to Yucatán and the Hernán Cortés expedition of 1519. He initially backed Cortés's expedition to Mexico, but because of his personal enmity for Cortés later ordered Pánfilo de Narváez to arrest him. Grijalva

26560-409: Was created to contract Lacandón communities for logging rights of their land. Unfortunately, NAFINSA controlled most of the royalties made by the company, 70%, as opposed to the 30% that the Lacandón communities received. Following the oil price crash in the early 1980s, the value of the peso dropped dramatically, which made international tourism even more attractive. Though this affected the economy of

26726-462: Was granted manumission and a pension of 50 pesos. Antonio Pérez was from North Africa, and a free black. He joined the conquest in Venezuela and was made a captain. Juan Portugués fought in the conquests in Venezuela. During the 1500s, the Spanish began to travel through and colonize North America. They were looking for gold in foreign kingdoms. By 1511 there were rumours of undiscovered lands to

26892-405: Was hemispherical with a ring base and a hole for venting the fire and releasing smoke. Unlike the smooth ceramics used for everyday life, these vessels were adorned with the modeled head of a deity on the rim, proving this object is used for religious rites. The modeled heads “closely resemble those made by the ethnographic Lacandon.” Other decorations include incised lines and holes down the front of

27058-512: Was largely divided before the hallmark of this marriage. Five independent kingdoms: Portugal in the West, Aragon and Navarre in the East, Castile in the large center, and Granada in the south, all had independent sovereignty and competing interests. The conflict between Christians and Muslims to control Iberia, which started with North Africa's Muslim invasion in 711, lasted from the years 718 to 1492. Christians, fighting for control, successfully pushed

27224-464: Was often thought to sustain the Gods and keep order in the universe. The figurines were made of sap from the Castilla elastica tree, which was seen as blood from the tree and is thought to represent the blood sacrifices in some of the Lacandon ceremonies. These figurines were usually in the form of humans with specific body parts clearly represented but at times were also in the form of animals. Part of

27390-648: Was one of four men who accompanied Marcos de Niza as a guide in search of the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola , preceding Coronado . When the others were struck ill, Estevanico continued alone, opening up what is now New Mexico and Arizona. He was killed at the Zuni village of Hawikuh in present-day New Mexico. The viceroy of New Spain Antonio de Mendoza , for whom is named the Codex Mendoza , commissioned several expeditions to explore and establish settlements in

27556-473: Was sent out with four ships and some 240 men. Hernán Cortés, led an expedition (entrada) to Mexico, which included Pedro de Alvarado and Bernardino Vázquez de Tapia. The Spanish campaign against the Aztec Empire had its final victory on 13 August 1521, when a coalition army of Spanish forces and native Tlaxcalan warriors led by Cortés and Xicotencatl the Younger captured the emperor Cuauhtemoc and Tenochtitlan,

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