Cultures & Communities

Cleveland Many Peoples One Language Poster

Furniture, cooking wares, clothing, works of art, and many other kinds of artifacts are part of what knit people into communities and cultures. The Museum’s collections feature artifacts from European Americans, Latinos, Arab Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, African Americans, Gypsies, Jews, and Christians, both Catholics and Protestants. The objects range from ceramic face jugs made by enslaved African Americans in South Carolina to graduation robes and wedding gowns. The holdings also include artifacts associated with education, such as teaching equipment, textbooks, and two complete schoolrooms. Uniforms, insignia, and other objects represent a wide variety of civic and voluntary organizations, including youth and fraternal groups, scouting, police forces, and firefighters.

Place: Puerto Rico

Plato de Madera

Carved from a single piece of wood, this large and oblong shallow wood platter was probably used for drying coffee or serving sweets in the early 20th century.Este gran plato de madera oblongo y llano, tallado de una sola pieza, se empleaba probablemente para secar café o servir
Description
Carved from a single piece of wood, this large and oblong shallow wood platter was probably used for drying coffee or serving sweets in the early 20th century.
Description (Spanish)
Este gran plato de madera oblongo y llano, tallado de una sola pieza, se empleaba probablemente para secar café o servir dulces al comienzo del siglo XX.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
early 20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0357
catalog number
1997.0097.0357
accession number
1997.0097

mask making sample

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
maker
Pagan, Leonardo
Pagan, Leonardo
ID Number
1997.0097.1171.002
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1171.002

Marímbula

The marímbula, (also marímbola), is an African-derived folk instrument found across the Caribbean. Large enough for its player to sit on, this instrument consists of a large, resonating box with metal strips that are plucked to provide a simple bass accompaniment.
Description
The marímbula, (also marímbola), is an African-derived folk instrument found across the Caribbean. Large enough for its player to sit on, this instrument consists of a large, resonating box with metal strips that are plucked to provide a simple bass accompaniment. Its affordability, ease of construction, and portability (it can be strapped to its player like a marching drum), made it adaptable to many styles of folk music, from the roving aguinaldo of the Christmas season to a street-corner plena.
Description (Spanish)
La marímbula, o marímbola, es un instrumento derivado del folklore africano que puede hallarse en todo el Caribe. Es lo suficientemente grande como para que el intérprete pueda sentarse sobre él. Consiste en una caja de resonancia con flejes de metal que se puntean produciendo un simple acompañamiento de sonidos graves. Dado que se trata de un instrumento accesible, fácil de construir y de transportar (el intérprete puede colgárselo con una faja al igual que un tambor de marcha), se lo adaptó a diferentes estilos de música folclórica, desde el aguinaldo de la época navideña hasta la plena.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0512
catalog number
1997.0097.0512
accession number
1997.0097

Careta de vejigante

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca. 1980
ca 1980
maker
Gonzalez, Alberto
Gonzalez, Alberto
ID Number
1997.0097.0007
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0007

Funda de Almohada

Lace-making and sewing were more than utilitarian projects. They allowed young girls to express themselves artistically while learning discipline and attention to detail. This embroidered linen and lace pillow sham belonged to Miguel Roses at the turn of the 20th century.
Description
Lace-making and sewing were more than utilitarian projects. They allowed young girls to express themselves artistically while learning discipline and attention to detail. This embroidered linen and lace pillow sham belonged to Miguel Roses at the turn of the 20th century. Bird and flower designs surround the monogram in the center.
Description (Spanish)
El tejido de encaje no se consideraba únicamente como proyecto utilitario, sino también como una actividad mediante la cual las niñas podían expresarse artísticamente, a la vez que aprendían disciplina y atención al detalle. Esta ropa blanca bordada junto a la funda de almohada hecha en encaje pertenecieron a Miguel Roses a comienzos del siglo XX. Se observa el diseño de un pájaro y una flor rodeando el monograma central.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
user
Rosas, Miguel
ID Number
1997.0097.0158
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0158

Herramientas De Coser

Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0593.004
catalog number
1997.0097.0593.004
accession number
1997.0097

San Sebastián

Saint Sebastian was an early Christian martyr who, according to legend, was tied to a tree, shot with arrows, and left for dead. He not only recovered, but returned to preaching Christianity. For this, the Roman emperor Diocletian ordered him beaten to death.
Description
Saint Sebastian was an early Christian martyr who, according to legend, was tied to a tree, shot with arrows, and left for dead. He not only recovered, but returned to preaching Christianity. For this, the Roman emperor Diocletian ordered him beaten to death. He is almost always represented tied to a post and shot with arrows, thus making him instantly recognizable.
Description (Spanish)
San Sebastián fue un antiguo mártir cristiano, a quien según cuenta la leyenda, amarraron a un árbol, dispararon flechas y abandonaron dándolo por muerto. Sin embargo, no solo se recobró sino que regresó a promulgar el cristianismo. Por esta razón, el emperador romano Diocletian ordenó que se lo matara a golpes. Es fácil reconocer su imagen porque casi siempre se lo representa amarrado a un poste con flechas clavadas en el cuerpo.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
late 19th-early 20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0696
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0696

Güiro

A traditional güiro is made from gourd-like fruit of the higüero tree (Crescentia cujete) that is native to the region. This musical instrument, common throughout the Caribbean, takes on various forms and can be made from modern materials like metal or plastic.
Description
A traditional güiro is made from gourd-like fruit of the higüero tree (Crescentia cujete) that is native to the region. This musical instrument, common throughout the Caribbean, takes on various forms and can be made from modern materials like metal or plastic. A musical instrument of Pre-Columbian origin, it is played by scraping the carved ridges with the tines of a special pick or scraper.
Description (Spanish)
El güiro tradicional se hace con la calabaza del higüero, Crescentia cujete, que es un árbol nativo de la región. Este instrumento musical, común a todo el Caribe, se presenta de distintas formas y materiales, como de metal o plástico. Sus orígenes se remontan a la época precolombina. Se ejecuta raspando las ranuras talladas con las puntas de un puyero o raspador.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.1077
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1077

Razor Blade

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca. 1940
ID Number
1997.0097.0835.004
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0835.004

Canasta Colgante

This basket was bought in Luquillo in 1979. The hanging supports are made of bejuco, processed fiber from the century plant, or maguey. A large metal disk was placed around the top to keep rodents from crawling into it from above.
Description
This basket was bought in Luquillo in 1979. The hanging supports are made of bejuco, processed fiber from the century plant, or maguey. A large metal disk was placed around the top to keep rodents from crawling into it from above. Widely used in rural kitchens, it is called a canestillo in the center of the island and a barandillo in the north.
Description (Spanish)
Esta canasta colgante fue adquirida en Luquillo en 1979. Los soportes están hechos de bejuco, fibra procesada del maguey. Se colocó un disco de metal grande alrededor de la parte superior para evitar que se introdujeran los roedores. Se utiliza mucho en las cocinas rurales y se la conoce como canestillo en el centro de la isla y como barandillo en el norte.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ca 1979
ID Number
1997.0097.1012
catalog number
1997.0097.1012
accession number
1997.0097

Máscara de Carnaval

This elaborate mask, made around 1980, is painted in red and black, the colors of the city of Ponce.
Description
This elaborate mask, made around 1980, is painted in red and black, the colors of the city of Ponce. Masks like this are typically worn by young men from the neighborhood, who don the costume of a vejigante, a character who roams the streets during Carnival, playfully scaring children and other revelers, and swatting them with vejigas (balloon-like, inflated animal bladders).
Description (Spanish)
Esta elaborada máscara, confeccionada alrededor de 1980, está pintada en rojo y negro, los colores de la ciudad de Ponce. Para la época del carnaval, los jóvenes del barrio acostumbran a disfrazarse de vejigantes con máscaras como ésta y salen a deambular por las calles asustando a los niños y concurrentes a la fiesta, dándoles palmadas con sus vejigas (vejigas de animales infladas como globos y puestas a secar).
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1980
ID Number
1997.0097.0016
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0016

Cuatro

The modern cuatro is a five double-string guitar-like instrument used to play música jíbara, Puerto Rican country music.
Description
The modern cuatro is a five double-string guitar-like instrument used to play música jíbara, Puerto Rican country music. In this unusual example, the dried, woody fruit of the higüero tree, a material more commonly used in the fabrication of maracas or güiros, comprises the main body of the instrument. The archaic cuatro had only four strings (sometimes doubled), like the example here. In the early 20th century, Puerto Rican musicians on the northern part of the island revamped the cuatro and added up to six more metal strings to allow for heightened virtuosity.
Description (Spanish)
El cuatro moderno es un instrumento parecido a la guitarra, con cinco cuerdas dobles, que se usa para tocar música jíbara, es decir, música campesina de Puerto Rico. En este ejemplo poco usual, el cuerpo principal del instrumento está hecho con el fruto seco del higüero, material que por lo general se emplea en la fabricación de maracas o güiros. El cuatro arcaico estaba dotado de solo cuatro cuerdas (a veces dobles), como en este caso. A principios del siglo XX, los músicos del norte de Puerto Rico modernizaron el cuatro y le agregaron hasta seis cuerdas más que permiten destacar el virtuosismo el intérprete.
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.1082
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1082

Molde Para Careta De Vejigante

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20the century
maker
Pagan, Leonardo
ID Number
1997.0097.0371.002
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0371.002

Herramientas De Coser

Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0593.006
catalog number
1997.0097.0593.006
accession number
1997.0097

Puyero de Güiro

Known as a puyero or raspador, the pick or scraper used to play the güiro makes rhythmic patterns with combinations of downstrokes and upstrokes.Conocida también como púa o raspador, el puyero que se utiliza para tocar el güiro produce patrones rítmicos que se logran combinando g
Description
Known as a puyero or raspador, the pick or scraper used to play the güiro makes rhythmic patterns with combinations of downstrokes and upstrokes.
Description (Spanish)
Conocida también como púa o raspador, el puyero que se utiliza para tocar el güiro produce patrones rítmicos que se logran combinando golpes hacia arriba y hacia abajo.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.1093
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1093

Pilón

This mortar and pestle were used to grind coffee beans after they were dried and roasted. Coffee was a major cash crop in Puerto Rico, second only to sugar. It grows well in the low mountains of the island, like the fertile area around the town of Yauco in the southwest.
Description
This mortar and pestle were used to grind coffee beans after they were dried and roasted. Coffee was a major cash crop in Puerto Rico, second only to sugar. It grows well in the low mountains of the island, like the fertile area around the town of Yauco in the southwest. In the 19th century many Corsicans settled in this region and played a significant role in developing the island's coffee economy, both as growers and exporters.
Description (Spanish)
El pilón se usaba para machacar los granos de café una vez secos y tostados. El café constituía un cultivo comercial de gran relevancia en Puerto Rico, el segundo en importancia después del azúcar. Se da bien en las montañas bajas de la isla, como por ejemplo en la zona fértil alrededor de la ciudad de Yauco, en el sudoeste. Durante el siglo XIX se establecieron en esta región muchos colonos oriundos de Córcega, quienes desempeñaron un papel esencial en el desarrollo de la economía de la isla en torno al café, impulsando tanto la producción como la exportación.
Date made
ca 1970
ID Number
1997.0097.0129
catalog number
1997.0097.0129
accession number
1997.0097

Cuello de Encaje

In Puerto Rico, the traditional center of lace making is the town of Moca. There, lace is made by hand on bobbins and is known as mundillo. Bobbin lace is a complicated process of weaving together different spools of thread held in place by pins.
Description
In Puerto Rico, the traditional center of lace making is the town of Moca. There, lace is made by hand on bobbins and is known as mundillo. Bobbin lace is a complicated process of weaving together different spools of thread held in place by pins. Lace making today is undergoing a resurgence of popularity among a new generation of lace makers on and off the island.
Description (Spanish)
Moca constituye el centro tradicional del tejido de encaje en Puerto Rico. Allí se hace el encaje a mano en bolillo que se conoce como mundillo. El encaje de bolillos es un proceso complicado que consiste en el entretejido de diferentes bovinas de hilo que se sujetan mediante alfileres. El tejido de encaje está recuperando la popularidad gracias a una nueva generación de tejedores dentro y fuera de la isla.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0156
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0156

San Juan Nepomuceno

This large santo depicts St. John Nepomucene, a 14th-century martyr who is considered by Catholics to be the patron saint of confession. His image was widely circulated by Jesuits throughout the Spanish empire in the 18th century.
Description
This large santo depicts St. John Nepomucene, a 14th-century martyr who is considered by Catholics to be the patron saint of confession. His image was widely circulated by Jesuits throughout the Spanish empire in the 18th century. The Church promoted devotion to this saint since it encouraged Catholics to confess their sins in the presence of a priest, a ritual known as the Sacrament of Penance. This santo is believed to be the work of Felipe de la Espada (1754–1818).
Description (Spanish)
Este santo de gran tamaño representa a San Juan Nepomuceno, un mártir del siglo XIV a quien los católicos consideran patrón de la santa confesión. Los jesuitas distribuyeron ampliamente su imagen a lo largo del imperio español durante el siglo XVIII. La iglesia fomentó la devoción a este santo por considerarlo un incentivo a que los católicos confesaran sus pecados en presencia de un sacerdote, ritual conocido como el Sacramento de la Penitencia. Se cree que este santo es obra de Felipe de la Espada (1754–1818).
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1754-1818-06-18
maker
Espada, Felipe de la
ID Number
1997.0097.0901
catalog number
1997.0097.0901
accession number
1997.0097

mask making sample

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1970
ID Number
1997.0097.1171.001
catalog number
1997.0097.1171.001
accession number
1997.0097

Branding iron

This branding iron was used in the 20th century to brand cattle with the letters "HC." While cattle and other livestock were introduced to Puerto Rico and throughout the Caribbean in the earliest years of Spanish settlement, by the 20th century most land on the island was geared
Description
This branding iron was used in the 20th century to brand cattle with the letters "HC." While cattle and other livestock were introduced to Puerto Rico and throughout the Caribbean in the earliest years of Spanish settlement, by the 20th century most land on the island was geared towards a cash crop economy based on sugar cane, coffee, tobacco, and other agricultural products grown for export.
Description (Spanish)
Esta marca de hierro se usó en el siglo XX para marcar el ganado con las letras "HC". Si bien el ganado fue introducido en Puerto Rico y el Caribe durante los primeros años de la colonización española, ya para el siglo XX la mayoría de las tierras de la isla se destinaban a cultivos comerciales basados en la caña de azúcar, el café, el tabaco y otros productos agropecuarios sembrados para la exportación.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.0138
catalog number
1997.0097.0138
accession number
1997.0097

Santiago Matamoros

This wooden santo represents Santiago Matamoros, or St. James the Moor Slayer. It was made by the Ramos family from the town of Aguada.
Description
This wooden santo represents Santiago Matamoros, or St. James the Moor Slayer. It was made by the Ramos family from the town of Aguada. Santiago Matamoros is the patron saint of Spain and provided spiritual inspiration for the Christian re-conquest of Iberia and the subsequent expulsion of Jews and Muslims. The legacy of this conflict between Christians and Muslims in Spain was transplanted to the Americas.
Description (Spanish)
Este santo de madera que representa a Santiago Matamoros fue tallado por la familia Ramos en el pueblo de Aguada. Santiago Matamoros es el santo patrón de España y fuente de inspiración de la reconquista cristiana de Iberia, con la consiguiente expulsión de judíos y musulmanes. Este legado de conflicto entre cristianos y musulmanes se trasladó luego desde España a las colonias de América.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1904
maker
Ramos, Pepe
Ramos, Justina
Ramos, Jose
Ramos, Justina Torres de
ID Number
1997.0097.0650
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.0650

Pandereta

This large, hand-held drum, known in Puerto Rico as a pandereta, is an essential instrument in the musical genre known as plena. The plena was developed by agricultural workers at the end of the 19th century on the southern coast of the island, around the city of Ponce.
Description
This large, hand-held drum, known in Puerto Rico as a pandereta, is an essential instrument in the musical genre known as plena. The plena was developed by agricultural workers at the end of the 19th century on the southern coast of the island, around the city of Ponce. Considered a national musical genre throughout the 20th century, the plena may have originally reflected musical traditions brought to Puerto Rico by immigrants from other Caribbean islands.
Description (Spanish)
Este gran tambor de mano, conocido en Puerto Rico como pandereta, es un instrumento esencial dentro del género musical conocido como plena. La plena surgió entre los trabajadores del campo a fines del siglo XIX en la costa sureña de la isla, alrededor de la ciudad de Ponce. A lo largo del siglo XX se la consideró como género de música nacional, si bien originalmente puede haber reflejado tradiciones musicales llevadas a Puerto Rico por inmigrantes de otras islas del Caribe.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
20th century
ID Number
1997.0097.1095
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1095

Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria

This wooden figure of La Virgen de la Candelaria was made by Genaro Rivera in the town of Morovis in the early 1900s. This saint is especially popular in Puerto Rican cultural traditions and folk religion.
Description
This wooden figure of La Virgen de la Candelaria was made by Genaro Rivera in the town of Morovis in the early 1900s. This saint is especially popular in Puerto Rican cultural traditions and folk religion. Many of the first settlers to Puerto Rico came originally from the Canary Islands, bringing with them their patron saint, the Virgen de la Candelaria, the Virgin of Candlemas.
Description (Spanish)
Esta figura de madera de la Virgen de la Candelaria fue tallada por Genaro Rivera en el pueblo de Morovis al comienzo del siglo XX. Este es un santo particularmente popular dentro de la tradición cultural y religiosa puertorriqueña. La Virgen de la Candelaria era el santo patrono de muchos de los primeros colonos, oriundos de las Islas Canarias, que emigraron a Puerto Rico.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1861-12-10-1941-12-14
maker
Rivera Aviles, Genaro
Rivera Aviles, Genaro
ID Number
1997.0097.0544
catalog number
1997.0097.0544
accession number
1997.0097

Oil lamp

This red painted tinware oil lamp was acquired in the town of Lares in 1959. Popular lore says that small oil lamps like this were used by women to meet at night and gossip.
Description
This red painted tinware oil lamp was acquired in the town of Lares in 1959. Popular lore says that small oil lamps like this were used by women to meet at night and gossip. Chisme, means gossip, therefore the lamp was named a chismosa, or gossiper.
Description (Spanish)
Esta lámpara de aceite de latón fue adquirida en la ciudad de Lares en 1959. Es la creencia popular que lámparas pequeñas como estas eran usadas por mujeres que se reunían por la noche a chismear. Por esta razón este tipo de lámparas se llaman chismosas.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1959
ID Number
1997.0097.1067
accession number
1997.0097
catalog number
1997.0097.1067

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