Mesoamerican murals.

 

When you go to the ruins of Mesoamerican cities in Mexico,

Some places have murals.

 

around Mexico City,

Including Tenochtitlan (commonly known as Templomajor),

Teotihuacan,

Kakastra,

Cholula,

Xochicalco

etc. Today,

It exists.

☝☝☝Ruins of the city of Bonampak in Chiapas
It arose around XNUMX-XNUMX.
It is believed that he painted an event in the sky, where it was believed that God was present.
Along with Kakastra, it is considered one of the most important wall paintings of Mesoamerica.

 

only in mexico

XNUMX places,

Guatemala and Belize

Today, including the Maya cultural sphere of other countries,

It is said to exist in XNUMX locations.

 

excuse me,

I don't know much about other countries...

 

Mesoamerican mural painting techniques

It is basically similar to the wall paintings of Japanese burial mounds,

Or rather, it's the same.

 

in Japan,

Estimated to be late XNUMXth century

It is possible to confirm the act of drawing using paints and brushes,

It is said that the murals in Takeshita Kofun in Fukuoka Prefecture are the oldest* in Japan.

(*not a reliable source)

 

In addition,

Takamatsuzuka Tumulus, which is famous for its richly colored murals that are national treasures of Nara Prefecture,

The Kitora Tumulus is said to be the second burial mound to be discovered in Japan after the Takamatsuzuka Burial Mound.

Both of them are presumed to have been built in the Nara period (from the end of the XNUMXth century to the beginning of the XNUMXth century).

Late Teotihuacan in Mexico.

 

So what is the similarity to Mexico's Mesoamerican wall paintings?

on a base stonestucco layerto create

Coloring is done with colorants made from minerals.

 

as in Japan,

Limestone, one of the sedimentary rocks, is abundant in Mexico.

When this is heated to a high temperature, carbon dioxide and quicklime (calcium oxide) are obtained.

Grind it into powder,

calcium hydroxide paste by adding water,

In other words, raw plaster can be made,

This is plaster when it dries.

Paint the wall made of stone in the state of raw plaster,

flatten the surface,

Apply the color obtained from the ore in a semi-dry state.

 

By the way,

The work of burning this limestone,

I need a lot of heat.

To get just one kilo of quicklime,

Burned XNUMX-XNUMXmXNUMX of woodIt is

In Teotihuacan, it seems that almost the entire surface was plastered,

How much wood did you burn?

This contributed to the collapse of Teotihuacan.

It is believed that this is due to environmental issues.

 

Going back to the topic,

It's a fresco painting.

In Europe, during the Renaissance, Michelangelo, Da Vinci,

Famous painters such as Raphael

Created with fresco.

 

This technique

Long before the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries when they were active,

It was already in use in Mesoamerica.

 

The oldest wall paintings in Mesoamerica

San Bartolo in Guatemala, Mayan culture

is said to be around XNUMX BC.

 

That raises questions.

 

Frescoes that are already difficult to preserve,

For example, Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" completed in XNUMX,

Only a few of the originals are said to remain today.

Nevertheless,

A mural drawn long before that,

in very good condition in some places

What is it that has survived to this day?

about it.

 

Mesoamerican ancestors

colorantNopal (prickly pear) gooey resinI used it mixed with

This is what the composition of the Cacaxtla wall painting found.

I found out "relatively recently" in XNUMX.

☝☝☝Cacaxtla Ruins Templo Rojo
It prospered from the end of Teotihuacan to the Epiclassico period after abandonment from around XNUMX to XNUMX.
Here in 1994 the ingredients for nopal were found.
The long thin thing on the right side of the mural is called Cacaxtle.
It is like a bag for carrying goods.
To the left of it is the person who carries it.
The etymology of Cacaxtla is Cacaxtli (where Cacaxtle gathers)
I'm coming from.

 

☝☝☝Kakastra as well
The things and lives that people believed in at that time were drawn,
One of the most important wall paintings in Mesoamerica.

 

If you are familiar with paintings, I think you probably got the hang of it.

That's right, it's a characteristic of tempera painting.

Egg (yolk egg) in EuropeI used.

 

Except Nopal

Ingredients such as tar and plant sap have been found.

These resins

Raise the clay of the colorant and

A thin film is formed during the drying process.

This made the mural more durable.

 

in Japan,

For example, to obtain a green or dark blue color, green blue,

In other words, it is speculated that rust obtained from copper was used.

in Mexico,

Rust was also used to obtain a yellow, red or cherry color.

 

Drawn like this,

Mesoamerican wall paintings from hundreds and thousands of years ago.

 

Those of you who have seen it will know

It's so abstract that I don't really understand it.

I have two right hands,

Parts of the body and decorations that should not be visible are drawn in unnatural positions.

 

For them, murals are

A means of describing what happened at a place (a building)That's how it was.

SoRealistic depiction is secondaryso,

what was important,

symbolic at that time,

Unnaturally drawing on the table,

I drew it repeatedly.

In this way, in areas and times when there were no letters,

by muralrecord the events of the timeIt is

 

Considering this,

Some important symbols can be read in parts that are not unrealistic depictions,

Even if you look at the depiction of a snake swallowing a person,

I think it makes sense somehow.

 

Unfortunately,

in the early stages,

Many murals have been treated with inappropriate and insufficient techniques and knowledge,

Because of that, many precious “heritages” were lost.

and will continue to be lost.

Once lost, it never comes back.

 

The heritage left by our ancestors in the form of “wall paintings”,

Even if you are not interested and do not understand well,

Even if you just see the real thing and get what you feel

The value of a “Mexico trip” will increase dramatically.