 |
::01 |
 |
Asurini material culture includes the following
items: ceramics, weaving, basketry, weapons, body ornaments,
wooden benches and musical instruments (flutes). Ceramics
and weaving (hammocks, slings, headbands and other ornaments
made of cotton) are the women’s tasks. Ceramic pots
serve as recipients to transport and deposit water, serve
food and prepare it over the fire. In the latter case,
these are earthen vessels which have become black with
use. For other uses, ceramics are decorated with geometric
designs.
Ceramics are prepared from a clay that is obtained
from deposits two or three kilometers away from the
village, located near the banks of the Xingu River.
The vessels are made by using the technique of cording,
that is, the overlaying of rolls of clay. The form of
the vessel takes shape from the fusion of the rolls
together and with the help of a spatula made from a
gourd (kutiapé). With this also, the potter does
the initial smoothing of the piece which will later
be complemented during the drying of the piece, using
the fruit of the inajá (Maximiliam Régia)
or a rolling stone. The border of the vessels is usually
shaped with the fingers or by using a species of lichen
that makes it fine and uniform. After drying, the vessel
is initially burned, being placed near the fire until
its surface appears very dark. Later it is burned in
an oxidizing atmosphere with the barks of different
types of trees.
|
::02 |
 |
The final touches on the undecorated pieces are
made by applying a layer of a substance contained in the
inner bark of the stalk of a tree (t(*s)it(*s)i´wa),
giving them a reddish-brown color. In the painting of
the decorated pieces, mineral raw material is used, that
is, small stones of three colors: yellow (itawá),
red (itawapiringi) and black (itawaondi). These stones
are rubbed onto another larger one, thus producing the
dye. The yellow one is used as a base, painting the entire
external surface of the piece with this color. The black
and red are used in the elaboration of geometric designs.
These are done with paintbrushes that can be made of small
pieces of wood covered with cotton, palm leaf stems, plant
stems or mutum feather fibre. After finishing the painting,
the piece is left to dry. Afterwards, a layer of resin
from the jatobá tree (hymenaea), called dzotaika,
is passed over the external surface of the piece, polishing
it and fixing the dye.
Besides ceramics, geometric designs also decorate
the gourds (incised), bows and ornaments (traced). From
a vast repertoire of motifs and patterns of designs
used in the decoration of these items of material culture,
there are those that are used to ornament the body,
either by tattoing or painting with genipapo. These
designs are stylizations of elements from nature, as
well as representations of supernatural beings or symbolic
elements, such as Anhynga kwasiat (a mythical being
that gave the design to men) and Taingawa (a doll used
in shamanic rituals and that also means “image,
model, replica of the human being”).
|
Print