With and Without the Rebozo
Location: Mexico
Description:
This image presents another version of the traditional rebozo. Rather than self-consciously maintaining a stance of scientific detachment, the author here has used personal anecdotes and opinions to describe the image:
"I give [on the opposite page], sketches of the costume of the lower class of females, as you see them constantly in the house and on the street, with and without the shawl, or reboso. Without it the dress is scarcely any dress at all: one garment - besides a petticoat - braced with a sash around the waist, while the hair falls in a long plait down the back. With it - their costume is made up. Flung gracefully over the left shoulder and passed across the mouth - you see nothing but the eyes, which are her greatest charm, and she never attempts to conceal them or neglect their power" (52).
We can clearly see the sexualized element in this image, and in the motive for its inception. However, that does not detract from its usefulness as an object for study, especially if it is used, as mentioned before, as a model for comparison to later (or earlier) works of the same nature.
Book Title: Mexico as it is and as it was
Plate Number: Page 53
Call Number: F1213 .M46