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THE JAKALTEK MAYA BLOWGUN IN MYTHOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2004

Carol Ventura
Affiliation:
Department of Music and Art, Box 5045, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, TN 38505, USA

Abstract

Blowguns (or blow-guns) have been depicted on pre-Columbian pottery, mentioned in Maya myths, and are still used to hunt small game and birds in many parts of the Americas. This paper surveys the history of the blowgun in Mesoamerica and documents the manufacture and use of the blowgun in Jacaltenango, Guatemala, where it is used to hunt birds.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2003 Cambridge University Press

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