Introduction/Home Page by Ira Jacknis Introduction to Tzintzuntzan by the Anthropologist George Foster/ Map of Tzintzuntzan/ The First Fieldwork: 1944–46 Mariano Cornelio, a Tarascan fisherman/farmer, in his boat Vicente Rendon and his compadre Salvador Villagomes harvesting maize Vicente Rendón on the way to market with pottery Family at the grave on All Saints’ Day Jesús Peña making candles Tarascan masked dancers, "owner" and "watcher", at the Octava of Corpus Christi Highway victim Changes in Tzintzuntzan: 1945–79 and 1979-88 View towards the northwest side of Lake Pátzcuaro Yácatas, reconstructed ruins on the east edge of the village Doña Micaela González, in her small patio Melecio Hernández, husband of Micaela González, making an ox yoke Micaela González’s house; in front are her daughter Virginia Pichu, and William Iler, a UC Berkeley graduate student The new second floor on Micaela González’s house; Mary Foster on the balcony Dolores (Lola) Pichu and her younger sister Virginia Pichu, daughters of Micaela González and her first husband, Pedro Pichu Pachita Villagómez and her husband Faustino Peña Doña Andrea Medina, her daughter-in-law Pachita Villagómez, and her granddaughter Lucía Lupe Calderon and Eustolio Campos coming out of the parish church after their wedding Florentina Dominga, a Tarascan woman, with a midwife’s offering La Soledad chapel The arrival of fireworks (La Obra) at La Parroquia, the Parish church Death dancer, Salvador Maturino Red devil dancer Female attendants of the king and queen figures, Rosa Lara Group of spies entering the house of Ambrosio Zaldívar, to pay homage to the district saint (barrio santo) and to be fed; Holy Wednesday A spy; Holy Wednesday A penitente, with his assistant (cirineo); Good Friday Fish dancer and net in the procession of trades; Corpus Christi Little Old Man Dance (Los Viejitos) House façade decorated for a posada procession; before breaking the piñatas; Christmas season Tarascan women making tortillas by hand, cooked on a wood fire Lola Pichu making tortillas in a press, inside her present old-style kitchen Amalia Felices making pots, by joining two mold-made halves and smoothing the inside Doña Andrea Medina at the kiln in her yard Otilia Zavala, wife of Wenceslado Peña, glazing pottery Pachita Villagómez painting a fish design on a large platter, before glazing Salvador Cuirís and his pottery delivery truck Pottery sellers in the church atrium; Fiesta of Nuestro Señor del Rescate The store, "La Central," and the plaza on the main highway, looking south Lola Pichu inside her family’s store; Christmas Changes in Tzintzuntzan: 1988–2000 George Foster Biography La Soledad chapel; August 1958. Tzintzuntzan was (and is) well provided with churches to support an elaborate ritual system. The oldest buildings are the sixteenth-century Franciscan convent and adjacent chapel, which is now the parish church, and which was entirely rebuilt in the early 1950's following its destruction by fire in 1944. La Soledad chapel is a full-sized church completed in 1631. Technically the property of the Indigenous Community rather than the parish, it is the site of the principal Easter Week activities, as well as occasional Masses during the remainder of the year (1967). Every Mexican village which has any claim to size or importance has one fiesta which is larger and more interesting than those of the remainder of the year. Ordinarily it is the patron saint who is so honored. Although Tzintzuntzan has a fiesta for the patron, San Francisco, it deviates from the usual pattern in that the big celebration of the year is in honor of a painting of Christ, known as Nuestro Señor del Rescate ("Our Lord of the Redemption"). It is distinguished from all other local fiestas, and its importance indicated, by the fact that only it is referred to as la función, "the function," with the accent on "the." According to tradition the fiesta is relatively recent, having begun shortly after the turn of the present century (1948). In most Mexican communities rising standards of living and greater commercialization have been accompanied by a decay in the traditional fiesta system. This is not the case in Tzintzuntzan. While the elaborate cargo organization of earlier years has been simplified, with fiesta costs spread between larger numbers of encargados, the fiestas themselves are more animated and more interesting than 20 years ago. The Judea Passion Play grows in elaborateness, with new scenes added every year. The annual fiesta in honor of Nuestro Señor del Rescate now has a splendid group of at least 50 local dancers, who perform on three successive days (1979). CONTINUE >