Tempe Public Library

Incantations By Mayan Women: A Story

Phoenix Art Museum Librarian and One Tempe One Book present an intriguing book and the story behind it.

Every book has at least two stories to tell. One, the content on the pages, the narrative within. Two, the genesis—how the book came to be, who wrote it, why.

Incantations by Mayan Women is, quite literally, a rare book of magic, containing witchcraft of the Tzotzil speaking women of the Chiapas Highlands. All spells in this work are bilingual in Tzotzil and English, and run the complex gamut of an indigenous woman’s life experiences; including “For a Frightened Child That Won’t Sleep,” “So the Dog Won’t Bark at My Boyfriend,” “Calling the Dead to Supper,” and “Hex to Kill the Unfaithful Man.” This powerful cultural artifact is the first book to be made and published by the Tzotzil since the calamity of European invasion over 500 years ago. 

Join Phoenix Art Museum Librarian, Jesse Lopez, to learn about the amazing true stories connected to this very special book from the Lemon Art Library’s Rare Book Collection.

This is a One Tempe One Book program.

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