Maya Textile Tradition

Book excerpt: The Maya Textile Tradition provides an in-depth look at the life and art of the Maya of southern Mexico and Central America. Some 145 stunning images, made by the award-winning photographer Jeffrey Jay Foxx and arranged in breathtaking color portfolios, capture the glorious Maya arts and culture as preserved since ancient times. The photographs combine with artful line drawings made especially for this book, an introduction by Linda Schele, co-author of the groundbreaking study of Maya civilization The Blood of Kings, and texts by four leading Mayanists to provide a unique portrait of these proud and vital people. Ecologist James D. Nations introduces us to the history and ecology of the Maya world; Guatemalan author and curator Linda Asturias de Barrios discusses how the old ways still guide the people in their farming, marketing, and weaving; textile specialist Margot Blum Schevill writes on innovation and change in Maya textile art; and anthropologist Robert S. Carlsen discusses ceremony and ritual in the Maya world.