A Little Life & Death…The Carpets of Semana Santa

Construction on a Semana Santa carpet, or alfombra, starts in the wee hours of the morning when the cool Antigua air is still chilly on the skin and spotlights light up portions of the street where the alfombras will lie for mere minutes sometimes before the parades slowly shuffle along the cobbled streets, destroying the more than 12 hours worth of careful work and construction.
This video takes a look at the full life cycle of a Semana Santa carpet – from life until sad death:

Conception of a Semana Santa Carpet

These carpets are entirely unique in the world – you’re only going to find these sawdust alfombras during the Semana Santa (Holy Week leading up to Easter) festivities in Guatemala, the Canary Islands, and a few places in Spain. The carpets are masterpieces of artwork – the craftsmanship is truly stunning and families and neighborhoods take weeks and months just to plan out their carpets –the designs are new every year although some family pass down traditional patterns through the generations.
Neighbors and families work together and the carpets are traditionally constructed on the streets right outside their homes –a joint effort between all involved and a shared cost as well…the pigmented sawdust really adds up and the “sparkles” dusted overtop are incredibly expensive considering the scope of use on some of the carpets.

Creative Materials Yield Art

The size and complexity of the carpets also differs as widely as the materials used. Although many of my favorite carpets were designed out of the richly pigmented sawdust that stains the fingers for days afterwards, colorful whole and cut fruits, dully green pine needles, and a range of in-season flowers are just a couple of alternative carpet materials.

In many cases the families collaborate to design a carpet that shows the skills of their trade – this carpet may not be the most complex but the smells of rich chocolate waft for half a block. The chocolatiere’s carpet is not only a Holy Week offering, but a unique expression of his trade. He may not know flowers, he doesn’t dabble in the sawdust, but this man knows chocolate – and his creative display ensured I returned the next for a taste of the delicious smells I longed for in the dark hours of three in the mourning as he put the finishing touches on his carpet.