Photo Gallery

School is out. The little girl Yola from Puerto Cortés in Honduras is on her way home. His umbrella protects against both the rain and the sun. - 1977

An Indian woman from the village of Panchimalco, located in the centre of El Salvador. - 1977

This Indio girl from the village of Alto Caballero in the northwest of Panama belongs to the Guaymí people. - 1977

Young Cuna Indian girl from the San Blas archipelago wearing a small gold ring on her nose. These indigenous people form an ethnic group of about twenty-five thousand people. They are a very homogeneous group whose representatives are extremely proud of their culture, whether it be language, customs or beliefs. This does not prevent the Cuna, who are highly intelligent, from being attentive to everything that is happening in the world. Many of them work outside as teachers, doctors, lawyers or artists. Each Cuna community is headed by a chief, who reports to one of the three main caciques of the region. The responsibilities of the latter extend to all the representatives of the ethnic group. A daily meeting of the members of the community allows everyone to speak and express their opinions and judgements on the most diverse problems that the natives have to face. A more democratic system of government could not be imagined!

Young Cuna Indian woman from the San Blas archipelago. She wears a small gold ring on her nose. These indigenous people form a nation of about 25 000 people. They are a very unified group whose members are exceptionally proud of their culture, language, customs and beliefs. Each Cuna community has a leader, who in turn is under the command of one of the three main caciques of the region. The responsibility of the caciques encompasses the entire ethnic community. The daily meeting of the members of the community allows everyone to speak, present their views and express their opinions on the various issues facing the indigenous people. A more democratic system of government could not be imagined! - 1977

A Mayan woman at the Friday market in San Francisco El Alto in the department of Totonicapán, Guatemala. Following the example of their ancestors from pre-Columbian times, Mayan women today still carry everything on their heads, the laundry they washed at the river, the fruits, utensils, edibles and small pets they want to sell at the market. To do so, they use magnificent baskets made by the artisans of their community. - 1977

Indian girl from San Cristobal de Totonicapán, a picturesque village in western Guatemala. The indigenous people of Guatemala, who make up almost half of the country's population, are found mainly in the mountainous regions. They are divided into six main ethnic groups, each with a number of subgroups. Most of the Indians are more or less direct descendants of the pre-Columbian Maya, from whom they have inherited many traditions in terms of daily activities, social life, beliefs and crafts. However, they have not been without the influence of Western culture, from which they have borrowed many elements. Nevertheless, the present-day Indians of Guatemala and neighbouring regions continue to courageously defend an invaluable heritage that gives the country its personality. - 1977

Harvest in the grain fields near Quezaltenango. This boy carries a sheaf of wheat. - 1977

Mother and child photographed on the road from Quezaltenango to the capital of Guatemala. Like their more distant pre-Columbian ancestors, today's Mayan women carry everything on their heads: the clothes they have washed at the river, the products of the land and crafts, the provisions for the road or even the small domestic animals they go to sell at the nearest market. For this purpose, they use beautiful baskets made by artists from their community. The youngest child in the family accompanies his mother on all her journeys. Thus, from a very young age, the Indian child comes into contact with all the realities of the daily life of the woman to whom he owes his birth. - 1977