Our friend Sarah just gave me a framed artwork for Xmas. It's a handmade "glittery" card from Mexico. It has a symbolic meaning. I just googled it and learned more---it's pretty amazing.

It's from the Huichol people. In their culture, deer and corn and peyote are all one. It's called the "deer-maize-peyote complex" by the anthro types. And it's very old-timey. They're also called a "sacred trinity." ...The deer gives itself to the arrow and wherever the deer walks the peyote grows...

I just knew there was more going on out there in the woods than meets the eye.

Here's a little more of what I found about this in Wikipedia...

For the Huichol people of Mexico, the "magical deer" represents both the power of maize to sustain the body and of the peyote cactus to feed and enlighten the spirit. ... The character of the Huichol tends to be light, flexible and humorous. They have avoided open warfare, neither fighting against the Spanish nor Mexican governments, but holding to their own traditions. The Huichol hunt and sacrifice deer in their ceremonies. They make offerings to the Deer of the Maize to care for their crops, and to the Deer of the Peyote to bring them spiritual guidance and artistic inspiration.

And here's a link to an ebay listing for my card. I can't find it for sale anywhere else. (Ebay...the People's Gallery, baby!):

http://cgi.ebay.com/B-5-PARITZIKA-BROTHER-PEYOTE-DEER-HUICHOL-HANDMADE-CARD_W0QQitemZ370068909791QQihZ024QQcategoryZ104049QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el12471

Here's the group that makes these cards, I think. There is a lot of other art for sale here:

http://huicholcenter.org

Here's some more art:

http://www.latinamericanfolkart.com/huichol_item_204.htm

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