Modern Maya religious practice generally blends pre-Hispanic rituals and beliefs with Spanish Catholicism introduced after the 16th century. Particular Catholic saints are venerated in each Maya community and cared for by a local religious brotherhood, or cofradía. Miniature Maya vestments are often made as tribute for statues of the saints.

Modern Maya religious practice generally blends pre-Hispanic rituals and beliefs with Spanish Catholicism introduced after the 16th century. Particular Catholic saints are venerated in each Maya community and cared for by a local religious brotherhood, or cofradía. Miniature Maya vestments are often made as tribute for statues of the saints.

Modern Maya religious practice generally blends pre-Hispanic rituals and beliefs with Spanish Catholicism introduced after the 16th century. Particular Catholic saints are venerated in each Maya community and cared for by a local religious brotherhood, or cofradía. Miniature Maya vestments are often made as tribute for statues of the saints.

Among the societies of Central America, gold ornaments were important symbols of power and prestige that expressed authority and status in life and in death. Made to be worn across the chest, gold disks and pendants were still worn by local inhabitants of the Caribbean coast when Europeans encountered them at the turn of the 16th century.

Raised on a cotton farm near present-day Mesquite, Texas, Otis Dozier’s work is deeply personal and illuminates a vital moment in Texas history. Active in the 1930s and 1940s, Dozier was a seminal member of the Dallas Nine, a group of regional artists who sought inspiration from their rural surroundings, including despondent farmers affected by the Great Depression.

Andean weavers, past to present, are renowned for their technical skill and diversity in textile production. This impressive patchwork textile comprises two woven panels seamed together along the center. Alternating squares of white and brown plain-weave cotton fabric are connected through double interlocked and dovetailed threads, demonstrating the high technical skill of the weaver.