| Off the beaten track and
yet conveniently located next to a highway, the village of Santo
Tomás Jalieza is a beautiful place to visit in Oaxaca's Central
Valley.
The Zapotec
word jalieza means under the church. It is composed of jana (below)
and lieza (church).
HISTORY
Before the arrival of the Spanish, this town had been occupied
for more than one thousand years. The ceremonial center was moved
three times. From 200-500 or 600 AD, Danilí Hill was the
ceremonial center. It was replaced by a center built on Jialez Hill.
And around 900 or 1,000 the center was moved to Ticolute Hill.
The controling powers at Monte
Albán began to loose their influence around 600 or 700AD.
The foundation of of the Jialez center marks a profoun change. Local
noble families pulled away to establish their own kingdoms or city-states.
CULTURAL WORLD
The town's community museum is scheduled to open in the summer
of 2007. It will document the history with various archaeological
finds conducted by Christina Elson and Luca Casparis.
CRAFTS
Santo Tomás Jalieza is a quiet village that maintains a
tradition of making cotton products on back-strap looms. Artisans
wrap the straps of the loom around their waist and weave while the
loom rests on their laps.
Among the woven goods are embroidered belts, table place mats,
runners and purses.
There is a central market where most weavers work and sell their
wares. This becomes particularly lively on Fridays as people visit
en route to the weekly market at Ocotlán.
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