mano and metate

unrecorded Valley Zapotec artist, artist

mano and metate, 1989

Where object was made: San Juan Teitipac, Oaxaca, Mexico

Material/technique: stone; carving; paint

Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Length (Height x Width x Length): a 25 x 25 x 35.5 cm
Object Height/Width/Length (Height x Width x Length): 9 13/16 x 9 13/16 x 14 in
Object Length/Diameter (Length x Diameter): b 37 x 7 cm
Object Length/Diameter (Length x Diameter): 14 9/16 x 2 3/4 in
Weight (Weight): part a) 43.6 lbs
Weight (Weight): part b) 4.6 lbs

Credit line: Gift of Robert J. Smith

Accession number: 2007.4942.a,b

Not on display

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Label texts

The mano and metate is a set of grinding stones that have been used for centuries in the Americas to grind native food such as corn, cacao, beans, and chilies, as well as ceramic clay and paint pigments. The grinding process is demanding and requires time and strength. Women perform these tasks and instruct their young daughters how to properly use the mano and metate.
The mano and metate continue to be a vital tool for processing food, a mechanism for communicating valuable skills from older to younger generations, but they are also an integral part of kinship and marriage rituals. The tradition of gifting is the costumbre (custom) in many indigenous communities, where a metate is given to the newlyweds before they leave their parents’ homes. Moreover, mothers pass their metates on to their daughters so that one metate may be three or four generations old.

Exhibition Label:
"Roots and Journeys: Encountering Global Arts and Cultures," Dec-2014, Cassandra Mesick
The mano and metate is a set of grinding stones that have been used for centuries in the Americas to grind native food such as corn, cacao, beans, and chilies, as well as ceramic clay and paint pigments. The grinding process is demanding and requires time and strength. Women perform these tasks and instruct their young daughters how to properly use the mano and metate.
The mano and metate continue to be a vital tool for processing food, a mechanism for communicating valuable skills from older to younger generations, but they are also an integral part of kinship and marriage rituals. The tradition of gifting is the costumbre (custom) in many indigenous communities, where a metate is given to the newlyweds before they leave their parents’ homes. Moreover, mothers pass their metates on to their daughters so that one metate may be three or four generations old.