Guanajuato, Gto., (March 31, 2021).- In Purísima del Rincón, Guanajuato, there is a traditional representation of Holy Week whose protagonist is Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Christ. It is known as La Judea and was founded by the Guanajuato painter Hermenegildo Bustos in 1873.
The tradition lasted uninterruptedly for 146 years until 2020, the year the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to be canceled. This 2021 the Judea will not take place either, despite the improvements in the numbers of infections, since the government of Guanajuato seeks that the population remains protected.
This is how Judea is lived
The representation tells the story of Judas Iscariot, who helps the Jews and Romans to capture Jesus. Unlike other representations, Judea is original in the way of narrating the events, which culminate in the suicide of the traitor of the Nazarene.
For this representation, more than 300 masks are used, made by Purimé artisans with bunting tree wood, an abundant species in the region. Among the main characters that these masks represent are: Sad Judas, Black Judas, Ranchero, Oriental, Laughing, Malco, Time, the Greater Devil and the Lesser Devil.
The masks are one-of-a-kind works of art. They are made in a period of one week and due to the fine details, they can cost up to 3,000 Mexican pesos. In addition to the masks, the participants wear brightly colored tunics and turbans as clothing. Characters such as Jews, Roman soldiers and musicians also participate in the representation.
Judea is divided into four stages: “The Arrest”, “The Three Falls”, “The Seven Words” and “The Holy Confinement”, where the main characters and saints such as Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, the Apostle Saint John and the Magdalena are represented by religious images carved in wood manipulated and carried in each act.
Source: San Miguel Times
