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Grana cochinilla fina grows on the host nopal cactus paddles.
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Natural substances used to dye wool include the cochineal insect.
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A rug from Teotitlán del Valle takes its colors from natural dyes.
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Master weaver Porfirio Santiago from Teotitlán del Valle displays some of his rugs and tapestries.
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Most tourists have no idea that only a couple of hundred yards off the main highway, a minute or two from the black pottery village, is one the most fascinating destinations that the state of Oaxaca has to offer children and adults alike. And yet the majority of travelers have at least heard or read a snippet about the natural red dye which comes from a tiny insect and is used to color the rugs they buy in Teotitlán del Valle, and other products including some of the foods and beverages we eat today… the Grana cochinilla fina, commonly known as simply cochineal.
I suspect that from reading their guidebooks or speaking to tour guides and taxi drivers, visitors are not generally made aware of the importance of this little bug on the world stage over centuries; or perhaps they think it's enough to buy a tapete and be told it's been dyed with cochineal, and see and touch a few dried insects… rather than spend 40 or 50 minutes in amazement. It might be different if they knew that during the conquest era, next to gold and silver, cochineal was the most valuable commodity known to mankind, and that in 1758 Oaxaca exported more than 1.5 million Spanish pounds of it to Europe, Africa and Asia for a multitude of uses, including the dying of fabrics for uniforms worn by British nobility and cavalry.
Together known as Tlapanochestli, the quaint research facility, museum, ranch and open-air teaching environment is located at Santa María Coyotepec off a dirt road only 15 minutes from downtown Oaxaca. The attraction is designed to hold the interest of travelers of all ages and all backgrounds, from layperson to academic or professional.
Upon entering Tlapanochestli, you'll be greeted by one of the employees who works the ranch, or perhaps one of the two scientists who run the research and teaching programs, engineers Manual Loera Fernández and Ignacio del Río Dueñas. You'll learn about the lifecycle of the cochineal, how it attaches itself to and feeds off of a certain variety of nopal cactus, and about its harvesting and preparation for use as a dye. Both kids and grownups will delight and be awe-struck at having either a live or dried bug squished on their palm to yield the scarlet pigment. You'll be taught why not all types of nopal cactus are suitable for the production of cochineal, which ones are used to make salads, and about varietals that produce the sweet red edible fruit known as tuna, seasonally sold in marketplaces just as apples and oranges, and just as often encountered as a sorbet flavor or fresh fruit juice.
But your tour is not only about the insect and its host. It also includes learning about a plethora of other natural products used to dye foods and fabrics, such pecan shells, oyster conch, pomegranate, marigold, moss, onions, and the añil, or indigo plant that produces our blues. Combining some of these dyes with the cochineal results in yet a further spectrum of color. You'll also discover how to use cochineal in combination with lime juice or baking soda and with different colored natural wools to produce orange and purple hews.
One cannot help but marvel at. . .
Alvin Starkman together with wife Arlene operates Casa Machaya Oaxaca Bed & Breakfast. Alvin received his masters in social anthropology in 1978, and his law degree in 1984. Thereafter he was a litigator in Toronto until taking early retirement. He and his family were frequent visitors to Oaxaca between 1991 and when they became permanent residents in 2004. In his spare time Alvin leads private, small group tours to the craft villages, towns on their market days, ruins and other sites; writes articles about life and cultural traditions in Oaxaca; translates from Spanish to English for a local newspaper; and writes a legal column for a Canadian national antiques newspaper.
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