The President of the IDB, Luis Alberto Moreno, opened the exhibition "Heavenly Jade of the Maya", which includes exceptional jewelry and objects made with jade stones, the result of recent archaeological discoveries, which are exhibited in the U.S. capital for the first time.
IDB Cultural Center presents this exhibition to commemorate the thirteenth Bak'tun representing a change cycle measured in intervals of 394 years in the Mayan calendar. For scholars, it represents the beginning of a new era, which is celebrated on December 21, in the Gregorian calendar.
"More than an exhibition, this represents an encounter with the history and sensibility of one of the most important cultures of the continent," said Moreno. "It is a way of honoring the ancestors and highlighting the people of Maya origin that today continue to enrich our society", he added.
Heavenly Jade of the Maya was assembled following a rigorous selection of ancient pieces from the National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology of Guatemala City. These pieces, shown for the first time outside Guatemala, allow one to appreciate the creative richness of the Maya and prompts us to inquire into the context in which these artistic and religious developments took place.
Iván Duque Márquez, Chief of the Division of Culture, Solidarity and Creative Affairs of the IDB, regarded the show as "an unprecedented cultural undertaking designed to generate a greater understanding of our pre-Hispanic roots, giving rise to a reflection on the importance that these civilizations had in the evolution of the continent".
Other participants at the opening included, Gina Montiel, Manager of the Department for Central America, Mexico, Panama and Dominican Republic, representatives of the IDB’s Management, Libna Bonilla, Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Guatemala, a co-sponsor of the event, as well as authorities and members of the diplomatic and cultural community of Washington, DC.
"Heavenly Jade from the Maya is an exhibition through which the IDB wants to show its commitment and work with indigenous peoples", said Gina Montiel. "And what better way to do it than associating it with a historic celebration such as the Bak'tun, which unites the region of Mesoamerica with its own roots".
For centuries this civilization studied the movement of the stars and built a conceptual base to explain the relationship between the individual and the cosmos. The exhibition is a manifestation of art, history, beliefs and rituals, since for the Maya jade was more valuable than gold.
This event is part of a set of efforts by the IDB to join in this celebration that brings together Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and the states of southern Mexico. Part of these efforts includes, among others, the production of a new documentary entitled “Mayas, the flight through time” (Mayas, Aves del Tiempo), directed by the renowned Mexican filmmaker Sergio Yazbek, and sponsored by the IDB and the National Council for Culture and the Arts of Mexico.
The display will be open to the public at the IDB Cultural Center Gallery from December 19, 2012 until February 15, 2013. Gallery hours are from Monday to Friday 9:30 -18:00, and Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00 -18:00.
The Gallery of the IDB Cultural Center is located at 1300 New York Avenue NW, in Washington, DC.