Rebozos in Michoacán and Elsewhere in Mexico

As I've written before, Evangelina, our housekeeper, and I invariably began our day together leaning against the counter to chat while we drank a cafecito.

This day was special.  Never was Evangelina's highly refined sense of play more evident than as she began describing rebozos, "Our rebozos are our third hand; whatever we need to do, our rebozos help us with our work."

What is a rebozo?

Rebozos are shawls worn by Mexican women of all social classes, but especially by women from the countryside. Rebozos are worn draped around the shoulders—sometimes covering the head, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Here's Evangelina's playful litany of uses of the rebozo, along with her commentary:

This señora is wearing the classic rebozo from Michoacán; she had the cargo (charge) for maintaining a chapel we visited on the Purhépecha Meseta outside Pátzcuaro.

Need to carry your baby? Wrap him in your rebozo  and carry him on your back. Your hands are still free to do your work.   Need to carry firewood or bring crops in from the field?  Carry anything at all on your back the same way you carry your baby."  

Disgracefully, we failed to photograph campesina (countrywomen) walking along the dirt lane that passed in front of our house just outside Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, bent over from the weight of carrying large bundles of firewood wrapped in their rebozos.

"Need a sombrero because the sun too strong?  Fold your rebozo and put it on your head.
Need a belt?  That's easy—wrap your rebozo around your waist!"

Going to the market? Baby wrapped in rebozo leaves hands free to select and carry purchases. 

A Purhépecha friend told me that when the women raise their rebozos to cover their  mouths—and sometimes their noses—they are seeking protection from cold air, which is believed to be unhealthy. Note the woman in the left background wearing a black rebozo covering her head, nose and mouth. Or, added my friend, they may be gossiping—behind the rebozo, no one can see who is speaking.

Social Customs Surrounding the Rebozo

By now Evangelina realized that I was enthralled. Perhaps that's why she grew more serious as she explained that as she was getting ready to marry nearly fifty years ago, her father-in-law took her aside.  He explained that she must always have two rebozos—one for household tasks, and one for going afuera (outside) the house.

Then he continued, "If you don't have shoes, that's okay but you must always have a good rebozo, because your rebozo says to the world, 'I am a respectable woman'."

As Evangelina continued speaking, I recall that she had mentioned more than once how important it was for me to wear a rebozo when we visit the remote Purhépecha pueblos on the Meseta (high plateau outside Pátzcuaro). In her world, wearing a rebozo demonstrates respect.

I have heeded her advice. Now that I think about it, my rebozo may explain why women have felt comfortable in striking up conversations with me, which has happened frequently.

Group of women resting in front of the church in Nuria on the Purhépecha Meseta (Michoacán) 

The rebozo's role as a symbol of respectability sets the context for a man's role vis-a-vis his wife's rebozo. Evangelina's prospective father-in-law explained the man's responsibility like this, "If a man cannot tapar (cover) his woman, then he is no man at all."

This man has clearly fulfilled his responsibility to his wife

Where did the Rebozo come from?

The rebozo originates in Asia, where the dervishes and priests of ancient Persia, covered themselves with a type of manta or "xal"—a word transformed in Spanish to “chal”. Interestingly, in Spain it was used as both an overcoat and adornment whose seductive properties were duly noted.

Dama con chal c. 1900 España

It bears repeating that the Moors (North Africans who carried the Persian culture dominated by Islam) occupied the Iberian Peninsula for almost 800 years (710-1492 CE). Across those centuries, artistic and cultural elements from Persia were incorporated into what became Spanish culture.

In 1492, the Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand and Isabel—expansive after their final defeat of the Moors in Grenada—were receptive to funding Cristopher Columbus's expedition to sail West in search of a shorter trade route to Asia.

Popularized in Spain as the manta, this thick woolen cape was first brought to Nueva España (México) by Spanish soldiers under Cortés, who insisted that his men marry the indigenous women with whom they coupled. These marriages undoubtedly intensified pressures to develop appropriate clothing befitting the wives of the Spanish elite in Nueva España. 

The thick Spanish mantle was thus ‘mexicanized’ by combining it with elements of the Mesoamerican tilma (cloak/cape).

Maya nobleman wearing tilma

Aztec Noblewoman wearing tilma 

Perhaps even more importantly, Spanish galleons brought sheep from Spain to grow wool and Chinese silk from Manila. Over time silk and wool were added to the cotton favored by indigenous weavers before the arrival of the Spanish.   

In 1582 the Ordinances of the Royal Audiencia (government) of Nueva España prohibited Negro women, mulatas (Spanish-Negro women, slaves on the hemp and sugar plantations on the Yucatán Peninsula) or mestiza (Spanish-Indigenous women) from wearing the chal. 

The women circumvented the prohibition by redesigning the chal. They changed the garment's size—making it longer and wider—and began dying them indigo with white and pale blue stripes. 

The new rebozo gained widespread acceptance because women whose heads were uncovered were denied access to Mass celebrated in the churches, which thus increased demand for the rebozo.

Purhépecha women kneeling outside a church keeping vigil

In Mexico, then, apace with these changes, the Spanish "chal" gave way to the word rebozo, which comes according to various sources, either from the verb rebozarse "to muffle or cover" or from the verb arrebozarse or “to cover the face with a cape or mantle.”

By the 18th c. the rebozo was in widespread use among the women of Nueva España. About the rebozo, the second Count of Revillagigedo writes: “[All the women] wear it without exception, even the nuns, even the most elegant and rich women—even those from the humblest and poorest pueblos (villages). They use [the rebozo] like a mantilla, like a shawl, [they wear it] on promenades and even in the house; they wrap the rebozo around their shoulders; they put it on their heads; they cover themselves with it and tie it around their bodies…”.

Demure señorita with head covered by a rebozo from Santa Maria del Rio (San Luis Potosí).

Over the years, weavers in Mexico’s diverse regions have individualized their rebozos by creating their own styles and colors. For example, the rebozo in Michoacán is characterized by horizontal lines. Oaxaca and Puebla are home to the classic rebozo known as “de bolita” recognized throughout the Mexican Republic. 

Elegant Rebozos

At the highest levels of Mexican society, women don exquisite rebozos intricately woven from silk.

Elegant señorita models an intricately woven rebozo Santa Maria del Rio (San Luis Potosí)

Rebozo worn fashionably on one shoulder. A workshop on the rebozo was held in Pátzcuaro while we were traveling, so I missed it.  But a friend who attended said participants were shown one hundred different ways to wear the rebozo.

Arguably the best-known and most expensive rebozos come from Santa Maria del Rio (San Luis Potosí), where craftsmanship is the order of the day. Weavers utilize a range of materials, including cotton, artisela and silk. Proximity to the gold and silver mines of San Luis Potosí gave easy access to gold and silver threads.

Rebozo from 1790, in silk with gold and silver (Santa Maria del Rio)

Still Curious?

As I wrote this blog, I came upon some beautiful photos and videos of weavers in a variety of regions around Mexico.

In Spanish, but don't let that discourage you. This 4:28 minute 'short' is my favorite.  It describes the 'de bolita' style of rebozo that originated in Tenancingo, State of México. Before the Spaniards arrived,  weavers had only cotton to work with, and the garments were mostly white. Today's 'de bolita' rebozos are woven only in cotton. It doesn't matter that I don't understand all the Spanish, because the footage of the weavers working at their looms and photos of rebozos worn in past centuries are powerful visual communications:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLK2JyoVSFw

In English: Tia Stephanie (Schneider) runs cultural tours throughout Mexico. She organized this one to explore the art of the rebozo. Her descriptions and photos are beautiful, useful:  http://tiastephanietours.com/blog/?tag=mexican-rebozo

In English:  In 2009 Tia Stephanie joined forces with anthropologist Marta Turok to organize a rebozo fair at Lake Chapala: http://www.focusonmexico.com/Mexican-Rebozos-Wonders-in-Weaving.html

In English: If you're curious about how the rebozo is ingeniously arranged to carry a child without knots, this 3-minute UTube video fills the bill:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLzk0dabHN0

In Spanish: This is the most comprehensive history of the rebozo that I have been able to find:  http://www.mexicolindoyquerido.com.mx/mexico/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=110:el-rebozo&catid=190:tradiciones-mexicanas&I

In Spanish:  This description of the art of the rebozo as practiced in San Luis Potosí is excellent:  http://www.angelfire.com/ok/Sanluis/rebozo.html

About bordado (embroidery) in Mexico:  Jenny's Journal post "Art and Friendship in Zirahuén, Michoacán" introduces the compelling crewel-embroidery art of Houston artist Debby Breckeen who, since 2009, has made her home in the community of Zirahuén, Michoacán, near Pátzcuaro.

About bordado in Zirahuén, Michoacán: In June 2011, Debby Breckeen began offering a class in crewel embroidery to the ladies of Zirahuén. Although proficient in the embroidery techniques of deshilado ('Pulled-Thread') and punta cruz ('Cross-Stitch'), the ladies weren't familiar with the crewel embroidery stitches that are Debby's art form.

Jenny's Journal post "The Art of the Zirahuén Ladies Sewing Circle in Michoacán, México" tells the story of the group's first year and shows some of the ladies' work.