Making Tortillas.

   This photograph is of a very popular tradition in Mexico, the making of tortillas. This was taken by an unknown photographer in the town of Guanajuato, Guanajuato in Mexico during the decade of 1990-1909’s. In this photograph there is woman and a child sitting in what looks to be the outside area of a poorly, brick-and-wood made home. The woman seems to be around 55-70 years old and she is sitting on the floor in the traditional way to work the process of making tortillas by hand for a long amount of hours. She is wearing a dress with thick looking material with a cloth around her head and using it to cover her face from the sun. In terms of appearance, the woman doesn’t look happy at all; in fact she looks exhausted and mad compared to the child. The child in this photograph seems to be 2-3 years old, he is wearing a similar type of material in his clothes as the woman, he is wearing sandals and a very typical object in his head to cover his face from the sun: a sombrero. Unlike the woman in this picture, the boy appears smiling, which gives light to the picture. Seems to be that even though the characters in this photograph look poor and don’t have much of their own, there is something to smile about. Some of the objects in this picture are: a dog sitting in the back, most likely someone’s pet, a larger sombrero than the one the boy is wearing is also sitting on the floor behind the characters. To the right of the lady there is a jar, which is probably used to drink water as well as a basket, which is most likely used as storage for tortillas. A very important object in this picture is the rock laying in front of the woman, this rock is used to work the corn flour in order to make the tortillas and then heat them up in a “comal”. This picture resembles not only a tradition but a way of living, tortillas have been in the Mexican diet for centuries, even before conquered, Mexicans use to work with a type of corn or Maize in many different ways but mainly as an everyday diet. Even today, a tortilla made by hand is a tradition that millions of Mexicans use to cook their tortillas.

The Cotton Market, Bombay

This photograph resembles a very old type of business in India, selling textiles, in this case cotton. The picture was taken by William Johnson in company of William Henderson during the years 1855-1862 in the city of Mumbai, Maharashtra in India. In the picture appear 9 men, all looking 50 years and older apparently selling cotton in a market. They are all wearing the same outfit all white pieces of cloth, which look made of cotton as well as a dark hat. They are settled in front of a building that appears to be a market by the name of the picture. Some of them seem to be comparing different types of cotton as well as fitting it into the massive bags of this valuable material. At the time, selling cotton was good business, not only that but growing business. The history of establishment of cotton industry in India has a rich past. By 1883 there was seventy-nine cotton mills in operation in Bombay, which gave them the lead to the cotton industry. The cotton established industry was an initiation of a new history in India. Even though selling cotton was good business, in this photograph most men look serious and exhausted. Seems to be that they have been sitting in the sun for a long time as well as an unsatisfied look. Some of the objects in this picture are clothes, a tripod looking structure made of wood, and the massive bags of cotton.

 

 

#riseofcotton, #tortillaswitheverymeal, #maize