The Chiselled Gourds

THE CHISELLED-CARVED GOURDS REPRESENT THE TRADITIONS, BELIEFS AND EVERYDAY LIFE OF THE ANDEAN COMMUNITIES. THE PUMPKIN IS THE SUPPORT OF AN ARTISTIC EXPRESSION OF GREAT BEAUTY THAT DATES FROM PRE-HISPANIC TIMES. TODAY, THANKS TO THE CRAFTSMEN'S VERSATILITY, CONTEMPORARY EXPRESSIONS HAVE BEEN CREATED.

Data:
- The oldest chiselled gourd that the country keeps dates from 1848 and represents four scenes, among them, the danza de las tijeras

  (dance of the scissors). It remains in the Museo Nacional de la Cultura Peruana (National Museum of Peruvian Culture).
- The main handcrafts centres of chiselled gourds are found in the countryside communities of Cochas Chico and Cochas Grande, in the

  district of El Tambo, Huancayo province (Junin). They are also produced in Ayacucho and several locations of the north coast.
- The word mate comes from the word Quechua mat/, which means "plato de calabaza – plate of gourd".

EVOLUTION
The production of chiselled gourds had a clear descent during the Colonial period, but was recovered after the Independence. During the first years of the republic, the chiselled gourds had local customs motifs. The mentioned style thrived in Piura, Lambayeque, lea, Ancash and Ayacucho. Nowadays, the chiselled gourd is worked in the northern coast and even in Lima. Nevertheless, it is in the Mantaro Valley and, more precisely, in the locations of Cochas Grande and Cochas Chico, where the most famous chiselled gourds with recognized quality are produced. To the traditional creations, are summoned an increasing production of chiselled gourds created with the deliberate intention of being sold as a souvenir. These usually have motives of easy association with Peru, like the Nazca Lines or even foreign figures, like cartoon characters.

A MILENIAL PRACTICE
The two oldest little gourds date back 3.500 years, which were discovered by the American archaeologist Junius Bird, in the archaeological site Huaca Prieta, in La Libertad, and demonstrates that the practice of making inscriptions in the gourds date to pre- Incan times. Cultures from the north coast, like the Mochica and Chimu, created gourds with geometrical figures of fishes and birds. In places like Huaura, Ancon, Pachacamac and the northern coast, gourds with similar characteristics have also been discovered. The Incas developed more the technique and used the gourds intensively as containers, music instruments and ceremonial objects. On the surface, they represented agriculture and society activities that were accompanied by the geometrical motifs.

TOOLS
El bradawl or burin, main tool of the craftsmen, is a stick of quinua with a steel nail, which has a tip (thin or thick), with a triangular shape. It also essential to draw backgrounds with the use of a vaciador (arched cross-cut chisel). The piano type is used to smooth out wide areas and the curve type, for the design outlines. With the Ilimpi spoon of curved shape, the content of the gourd is extracted. The cuchuro, thin steel blade, makes the cut of the gourd's limpets easier, or it is also used to cut the gourd in two. The common knife helps even the borders and the sandpaper is used to polish it up. For the burning technique, a partly burned stick of quinual or eucalyptus is used. Some artisans have incorporated modern tools, like the emery, the pyrographers and the blowtorch.

DECORATION TECHNIQUES
There are several techniques to decorate gourds. The pirograbado, burned or huanca technique consists on outlining drawings so then they can make the shadows using a little burned trunk of quinual or a blowtorch. The technique of black background or Ayacuchana is also known. This one is based in chiselling the theme on the gourd, grease it with oil and then, cover it with Ichu`s ashes. Once this is done, the gourd is washed and let to dry. The ashes placed in the outlines highlight the motifs. The dyeing technique consists in submerging the gourd over a container with green or morello red dye dissolved in hot water. When the gourd takes the colour, it is rinsed and is left to dry. Then, it is chiselled and the images are dyed with white paint. It looks as like it has a black background. Among the recent created gourds, the so called "spring" stands out, this possesses different colours. In these, the figures previously carved-chiselled are outlined with white paint and painted with coloured tempera. At the end, so they shine, they get a layer of wax or varnish.

CIRCULATION
Cochas Grande and Cochas Chico, are important production centres of chiselled gourds, and welcome many visitors that purchase these pieces directly from the workshops. Most of the gourds that are produced there are traditional and unique pieces, that have the authors signature and the date of its creation. The artisans also offer their pieces in the Sunday fair of Huancayo and other countryside fairs and shops. Furthermore, they have placed orders from abroad. During the last few years, commerce through the internet has been developed. In Lima, the Nacional Museum of Peruvian Culture and the Peruvian Traditional Art Gallery "Joaquin Lopez Antay", of the Peruvian Congress, have interesting collections of chiselled gourds which you cannot miss.

MOTIFS
The reading of the motifs of the chiselled gourds is done in a circular way and from the bottom to the top. Like if it were a comic, each image has a relation with the one before, telling a story which ends with the image that is carved on the top lid. For many people, mostly the ones addressed to tourists and people who don't have knowledge of this art, inscriptions or numbers have been incorporated to make its understanding easier. Some of the more traditional ones represent scenes of everyday life, like sowing, harvests, dances, myths, traditions and religious festivities. Most of them are, in their majority, decoration pieces. During the last few years, the creation of practical gourds like, pancras, saltcellars, sugar bowls, chandeliers and even music instruments like maracas.

IN THE HANDS OF THE CRAFTSMEN OF AYACUCHO, THE FRAGILE STONE OF ALABASTER ADOPTS VERY EYE-CATCHING FORMS, SUCH THAT, IT DESERVES TO HAVE A NAME OF ITS OWN: HUAMANGA STONE. EVEN THOUGH IT IS CONSIDERED AN ART OF COLONIAL ORIGINS, THE MASTERY OF THE SCULPTORS AND THE QUALITY OF THE PIECES PRODUCED ALLOWS THE STATEMENT THAT IT IS ONE OF THE MAIN EXPRESSIONS OF A POPULAR PERUVIAN ART.

Data:
- The alabaster stone is extracted from the nearby quarries of the Chuschi location, in the Cangallo province, Ayacucho region.
- It is also called Niño rumi (stone of the baby), because with it, nativity scenes with the Baby Jesus were made
- In the Peruvian and Bolivian high plateaus, this stone is known as "belenguela".

HISTORY
In Colonial times, the shortage of traditional materials, like marble and porcelain, drove the sculptors to work the alabaster. The motifs were, in their majority, religious: crucifixes, biblical scenes, effigies of the Virgin and baby Jesus, among others. At the end of the XVIII century, images of almost forty centimetres tall were produced, a considerable size for this material that because of its fragility is better used in little sculptures. During these times, the pieces had a dyed coating, wax or golden paint to give them a shine. Already by the XIX century, this procedure was left aside to allow the pieces to stand out by the natural colour of the stone.

A PRIVILEGED MATERIAL
The alabaster stone is sediment of volcanic origin composed of hydrated calcium sulphate. It is usually transfused or white with soft streaks. It is a fragile and very malleable material which can be found in many places of the country. In Puno, it is worked with the so called "piedra del lago- lake stone", of similar composition, but a little more hard. With it, the craftsmen of the highlands make illas, sacred objects that represent alpacas, llamas, ramses and bulls, among other animals.

Web Pages:
- Cultural Centre of the National Mayor de San Marcos University http://www.ccsm-unmsm.edu.pe
- National Museum of Peruvian Culture http://www.museodelacultura.perucultural.org.pe/
- Interregional Centre of Peru's Craftsmen htpp://www.asociacion.ciap.org

RITUAL AND DECORATIVE PIECES
The sculpting on Huamanga stone are usually of two kinds. The purely decorative represent typical countryside scenes, music bands, mule teams and lumber animals, among other local costumes motifs, as well as religious themes. Another type, are the pieces that have ritual fines and are used in magic – religious ceremonies. It is believed that they were used to fight "love sickness" and some diseases. These are usually images of barely a few centimetres tall. There are also amulets, like the ones named "santolinos", which are small images of Saint Cipriano and Saint San Antonio (Anthony).

IN ARCHITECTURE
The Huamanga stone was also used in some constructions as a decorative element. In 1852, the sculptor from Ayacucho Juan Suarez built the font of the Plaza de Armas de Ayacucho (Main square of Ayacucho) with this material. In addition, the front of the Ocopa convent, in Junin, is made of Huamanga stone. A translucent variety of this stone is also used in large windowed churches, because it lets a soft light through which is considered propitious for meditation. In Lima, it can be appreciated in the Saint Mary Magdalene church, in Pueblo Libre, and in the chapel of Carmen of the convent of the Descalzos, in Rimac, among other places.

REVALUATION
As an expression born from the Spanish influence, the sculpting on Huamanga stone went on for centuries, the stylistic occidental canons. During the mid XIX century, the popularity of other materials, like marble and bronze sank this art in a profound slump. During the first decades of the 20th century, the pieces in Huamanga stone were scarce. In 1934, there were only 11 sculptors in Ayacucho; they lived in the locations of Carmen Alto and San Juan. The art was recovered in 1940, when in Ayacucho, exhibitions started to take place and fairs oriented to achieve the creation of a regional art school. By the 1960 decade, the demand of Huamanga stones in the cities increased and with it, the interest for this art. However, its colonial origin made many specialists of that time resisted considering this expression as part of the Peruvian art. A pioneer of its revaluation was Mercedes Gallagher de Parks, who in 1942, published the first essay entirely dedicated to the sculpting of the Huamanga stone. Nowadays, its condition of artistic Peruvian expression is not argued.

The Masks

THE MASKS ACCOMPANY HUMAN BEINGS SINCE THE BEGINNING OF ITS DEVELOPMENT. IT ISN'T ONLY USEFUL TO HIDE, MUTATE OR REVEAL; THEY HAVE ALSO USED IT TO ESTABLISH A CONNECTION WITH THE SACRED AND BE LINKED TO THE MYSTIC SPHERE. IN PERU, LIKE IN MANY OTHER PLACES, ITS ASSOCIATION WITH TRADITIONAL DANCES IS PROFOUND.

Data:
- From the pre-Hispanic Peru, the masks of the Chimu and Mochica

  cultures, made of gold, silver and copper, stand out because of

  their beauty.
- Nowadays, they are made with different materials, like wood,

  plaster, basil, tin, wire mesh, wire and glued cloth.
- Numerous dances, like the diablada, the morenada and the

  tunantada, incorporate the masks to play their characters.

PRE-HISPANIC RECORDS
In the cave paintings of Toquepala (Tacna) and Sumbay (Arequipa), masked hunters can be appreciated, which reveals the use of masks even in the Stone Age. There is also evidence of its use in cultures like Paracas, Nazca, Mochica, Sican and Chimu. In all these cases, it is believed that the masks carried out religious or ritual purposes. The mochicas, for example, used the human figures in gold, silver and copper with shells and precious stones settings. Furthermore, in its ceramics, characters with animal masks can be appreciated.

EVOLUTION
With different shapes and functions, the use of masks continued after the arrival of the Spaniards. The missionaries used masks of demons and of the archangel Saint Michael to dramatize their evangelistic message. They also kept using the dances and the popular feasts, like the carnivals. In the Andean religion, for example, the use of masks was developed to distinguish the characters that participated in their dances. Many of these masks are authentic art pieces. Practically, in almost every feast of the Andean region and the jungle, masks are used. We only present a few examples here.

IN PUNO
The Virgin of La Candelaria feast is the display of a great variety of masks. Among all of them, the most known is surely the king devil mask, who wears a golden crown, has no chin and has as appendices with seven little heads with horns and dragons, which represent the seven deadly sins. The devil's woman, on her side, wears a decoration of reptiles and two horns over the golden head. Both masks are usually made of brass. Another known figure is the dark-skinned king (in the picture), important figure of the morenada who carries a pipe between the teeth, has a dark face, a thick lower lip and a very thick nose.

IN CUSCO
Many of the dances that are practiced during the Virgin of El Carmen, in Paucartambo (from July 15th until the 18th) use plaster and wet paper masks. In the contradanza-opposite dance (satire of the Colonial ball room dancing), the caporal- crew chief or machu uses a mask of grotesque features of a white man with blue eyes, moustache and a huge mole in his nose. Meanwhile, the maqt'as (young villagers) exhibit masks with huge smiles that whistle or have their tongue out. Other characters are the black qhapaq (black slaves of the Colony), who wear black masks with golden features and blue tears. The saqras (naughty devils) exhibit features of animals and reptiles and insects decorations.

IN CAJAMARCA
During the carnivals (in the photo), the members of the patrols wear masks of wire or sleep masks. In the Virgin of Rosario feast masks are also used. The dancers who play the dance of the demons use masks of putty, white powder, glued water and tocuyo (a kind of fabric). The mask shows innocent gestures accompanied by ramses` horns; the eyes are made of glass, while the eras and teeth are usually made of brass. The face is of a pink tone and the hairs are of several colours.

IN THE JUNGLE
The boras, ethnic group of the north east of the Amazon, exhibit mask of animals during the feast of Pijuayo, which is celebrated in February in honour of the palm fruits with the same name. Through festive dances, masks of boas, foxes, wild pigs (sajinos), small parrots, buzzards, fishes, turtles, piranhas, bats and beetles. They are masks made with wood and fabrics of llanchama and cauchomacho, made by the boras men from the communities of Pucaurquillo and Brillo Nuevo. The decoration and painting, which includes the tribe symbol, is worked on by the women.

Web Pages:
- Peruvian Culture National Museum http://museodelacultura.perucultural.org.pe/
- Banco Central de Reserva Del Peru Museum http://museobcr.perucultural.org.pe/
- Masks of Huancayo http://www.huancainos.com/gonzalesmascaras.htm

Copyright © 2009 Domiruth Travel Service SAC. All rights reserved.

mharbaum@mac.com