Exploring Guatemala's Vibrant Easter Tradition
Antigua in southern Guatemala has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1979 for its cultural, political, and architectural importance. And while the Baroque colonial buildings in Guatemala's former capital are stunning in their own right, one annual Easter tradition enhances the city's beauty sevenfold. Each year, Antigua covers its streets in intricate alfombras, or carpets, during Semana Santa in preparation for the city's processions on Good Friday. Explore the history behind this tradition (and the extensive work that goes into it) through the following images.
Made of flowers, colored sawdust, fruits, vegetables, and sand, the long carpets cover much of the town's central roads, passing underneath the historic Santa Catalina Arch, a symbol of Antigua's European roots.
Local artists use stencils to quickly assemble the carpets, since they have just 24 hours the day before the Good Friday processions to create these works of art that are sometimes half a mile long.
The alfombras showcase different scenes important to the artists, often religious in nature, but covering Mayan traditions, mother nature, and Guatemalan history as well.
Guatemala isn't the only country to feature these elaborate colorful carpets. Italy hosts annual Infiorata flower festivals in Genzano and Spain's Canary Islands decorate the streets of La Orotava with floral carpets after Corpus Christi, about eight weeks after Easter.
While the intricate carpets take months and months to design, they have an incredibly short life span. The artisan crafts are seen as sacrificial, since the processions on Good Friday walk directly over the alfombras and destroy them as they pass.
The morning of Good Friday, thousands dressed in purple robes parade through Antigua's streets, carrying large floats depicting Christ through the 14 stations of the cross, a Catholic tradition. The colors of the alfombras are kicked together and a cleaning team directly follows the procession, sweeping the sawdust up and erasing all signs of the works of art.