Petaca Chest, 18th Century

North America, New Mexico, Spanish Colonial Period, circa 1700 to 1780. A beautifully preserved example of a Spanish Colonial pétaca (travel suitcase), made of rawhide. It features limb bands that act as hinges and an iron lock at the front. The leather features a fantastic repeating geometric decoration of stars and flowers, in a style inspired by the Aztecs. Petacas like these were used throughout the Spanish Empire, with some regional stylistic variations. Dimensions: 62 cm x 40 cm x 29 cm Mary Caroline Montano writes in her book “Tradiciones Nuevomexicanas: Hispano Arts and Culture of New Mexico”: “Some New Mexico chests were made with an overlay of leather, an influence from the Aztec Indians Mexicans, who called their leather chests "petacas" (derived from the Nahuatl term "petlacalli", designating the pre-Columbian strips intertwined with reed or palm fibers, and later with fabric and leather). The term is still used in New Mexico and southern Colorado. (p. 103).