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A LOOK INSIDE THE ARCHIVES AT ONE OF OUR CLASSIC ISSUES FROM NINE DECADES OF NEW MEXICO MAGAZINE.
November/December 1974
Christmas in New Mexico is...
Food for body and soul—Las Posadas It’s the age-old folk play Las Posadas—the portrayal of the night on which Mary and Joseph went in search of lodging after their long journey from Nazareth. Traditions like these have remained a part of the Spanish heritage in New Mexico for more than three centuries. The devotion was introduced more than 387 years ago by a zealous Augustinian missionary, Fray Diego de Soria, at the church of Alcoman, Mexico, with the approval of Pope Sixtus V. The devotion was established to counteract the traditional Aztec celebrations in honor of Huitzilepochti, god of war, which still held a strong attraction to Christian neophytes.
NEW MEXICO, by David Muench and Tony Hillerman (Charles H. Belding, 1974)
The essence of Christmas in New Mexico—a sumptuous wreath of New Mexico chile (measuring four feet in diameter!) frames an old-fashioned scene, complete with piñon tree, antique toys, and contented child.
piñons when i was young we would sit by an old firewood stove watching my grandmother make candy listening to the stories my grandparents would tell about “the old days”— and eat piñons now we belong to a supersonic age and have college degrees we sit around color t.v. sets watching the super bowl listening to howard cosell news stories of rioting, war, inflation— and eat piñons
It is the quality, the stark beauty, of the contents which makes this a book to cherish forever. While the automatic techniques of modern photography enable even rank amateurs to take excellent photos, evidently there is still plenty of room left for masters like David Muench. One is tempted to cut out many a full page for framing, although this would be a sin. Hillerman’s commentary on all of visual New Mexico gives him the opportunity to expatiate on prehistoric topography, a favorite bent of his. It is better than a mere historical approach, providing a good background for the photographic display. Those who can afford to buy this book will never be sorry.
—Leroy Quintana VOLUME 93, ISSUE 12 New Mexico Magazine (ISSN 0028-6249) is published monthly by the New Mexico Tourism Department at 495 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe, NM 87501-2750. SUBSCRIPTION PRICE: $25.95 per year, $45.95 outside the United States. Periodicals postage paid at Santa Fe, NM, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to New Mexico Magazine, PO Box 433148, Palm Coast, FL 32143-9881. Copyright © 2015 by New Mexico Magazine. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The magazine is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, or artwork.
72 NEW MEXICO | DECEMBER 2015