PROVENANCE
This piece was woven on a traditional backstrap loom and embroidered by hand.
 
Artist: Unknown
Date Procured: March 22, 2025
Region Purchased: San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas Mexico
Style: Typical style of San Juan Chamula 
Language Group:  Tzotzil
Age: Brand New, Never Worn
Material: 100% Cotton 
Pieces: This piece is comprised of 5 woven pieces that are sewn together by hand
 
THIS IS WHAT WE CALL THE MAYA RENAISSANCE
 
There has been an explosion of evolution within the artistic Maya community, rendering all sorts of modern styles for the fashion market.  This includes leather boots and shoes with woven and embroidered panels, high-end leather handbags with woven panels, and items like this stunning wool coat.  In the village of San Juan Chamula, artists have woven wool tunics and skirts for generations, as part of their traditonal and ceremonial clothing.  Something like this piece is made specifically for the retail market, and is a great way for artisans to bring their techniques forward, to please international markets.
 
It’s so crucial to recognize the explosion of creativity that has continually swept across Indigenous communities not only since contact, but also in pre-Hispanic times. Textiles have been undergoing revision since time began, as culture is not static, nor are cultural expressions. I will continue writing about such subjects, but encourage you to join us for our art tours throughout various regions of Mexico so you can see for yourself, first hand. What we view as the traditional clothes of the Maya were not traditional merely 5 or 10 or 30 years ago…

This exquisite coat was made from the wool of sacred sheep in the municipality of San Juan Chamula. Hand-washed, carded, spun and strung, the fabric for this piece was painstakingly and tightly woven on a backstrap loom, and then embroidered with cotton thread. This beautiful jacket embodies the connection of the land and the cosmos. The flower patterns symbolize the earth from which we spring, and are important food for the pollinators that allow us to enjoy sustenance. At the same time, the flowers are also mirrored as the sun, which rules the day sky and is the foundation of life on earth.  The zigzag pattern represents the sacred serpent, which emblemizes fertility and medicine. The circular patterns are stars, which the ancient Maya believed to be the souls of the ancestors. Though these patterns may seem simplistic at first glance, to read into them sparks a deeper meaning - one of our connection to the cosmos as energy having sprung from the fertile land - this story is the circle of life, and one that holds are loved ones near.

Woven Histories reside within the everyday and ceremonial garments of many cultures with ancient roots - and the Maya are far from a disappeared people with a forgotten past. Despite the colonial trope that these were a people who suddenly disappeared, their continuance is evolving and expanding at a time when our world needs this most - to remove control from corporate shareholders who have appropriated lands and culture from their careful custodians, and shift the power and economy back into the harness of local people.

Every time you purchase a work of art, whether it be wearable, medicinal, spiritual, functional or decorative, you are using your income to create a healthier livelihood for an individual, rather than a machine. Supporting artists is an act of positive and constructive resistance.

This work of beauty is unique to not only a specific country, but a specific municipality. It is meaningful, and its creation required years of practice to master its creation. This piece is alive from the energy of the person who created it.
 
 
MEASUREMENTS
If the circumfrance measurement is 46 inches, and your chest measurement is 46", this will be a very tight fit - please allow yourself some leverage with the sizing.
 
Chest Measurement: 23" (underarm to underarm = 46" circumfrance)
Underarm to Waist:  16.5 "
Total Height shoulder to waist:  26.5"
Underarm to Sleeve:  18.25"
 

ALL PIECES ARE SHIPPED AS FOUND
We do not adjust the pieces, nor do we pr-wash them.  
 
 
HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR JACKET

For best results, we recommend taking this coat to a dry cleaner when it needs to be cleaned.  For general maintenance, it's possible to spot-wash with a damp cloth.  If you decide to wash it at home, please use cold water and liquid woolite meant for wool.  Press the water from it gently, without wringing it, and lay it flat to dry so the weight of the water doesn't stretch it.  Some sources recommend adding a drop of baby oil to the rinse water, becuase soaps will strip the natural lanolin from the fibre.  Lanolin is a waxy substance that sheep produce to protect their wool, making it resistant to water.  

 
 
WE HOPE YOU ENJOY YOUR WOVEN TREASURE AND WILL PASS IT DOWN THROUGH THE ART LOVERS IN YOUR FAMILY.