Chimayo

The mythological saga of Flaco Salvador Cascabel Natividad, a native of Chimayo, New Mexico, and his encounters with alcohol, his community, and ultimately, himself.

Situated just 30 miles north of Santa Fe off the High Road to Taos, the highly acclaimed Rancho de Chimayo Restaurant has been serving traditional New Mexican cuisine in a beautiful setting for half a century. The atmosphere at this traditional Spanish hacienda, surrounded by mountains, is rivaled only by the fine, native cooking served in the grand early tradition by generations of the Jaramillo family. In 1991 the restaurant published a modest paperback cookbook for their silver anniversary. Twenty-five years and 50,000 copies later comes this beautiful new edition, just in time for the 50th anniversary celebrations. All recipes are completely revised and updated, with more than twenty delectable new dishes added. As an extra bonus, the book also features charming archival images as well as stunning full-color food and location photography, making this a beautiful keepsake of a special place as well as a mealtime companion to turn to again and again.

The name "Chimayó" is derived from the Tewa Indian term Tsi Mayoh and was given to a sacred place of the Pueblo Indians located in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains between Santa Fe and Taos. Many of the Spanish colonists who settled in Chimayó after peaceful reentry to New Mexico in 1692 were descendants of those who left Castile and Extremadura. Nurtured by their faith and strengthened by the traditions and skills they brought from Spain, settlers converted a harsh environment into a fertile, green valley that provided them a livelihood for several generations. In 1810, Don Bernardo Abeyta, a prominent citizen of Chimayó, discovered a crucifix buried near a sacred well of healing earth, where he built a church. This is the site of present-day Santuario de Chimayó, also known as the "Lourdes of America." Over the centuries, the descendants of Chimayó colonists developed a unique weaving tradition that is also known throughout the world. Present-day Chimayó offers a unique glimpse into a culture that has endured for centuries.

Winner, 2018 Paul J. Foik Award for Best Book on Catholic History in the American Southwest, presented by the Texas Catholic Historical Society The remarkable history of the Santuario de Chimayó, the church whose world-renowned healing powers have drawn visitors to its steps for centuries. Nestled in a valley at the feet of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, the Santuario de Chimayó has been called the most important Catholic pilgrimage site in America. To experience the Santuario’s miraculous healing dirt, pilgrims and visitors first walk into the cool, adobe church, proceeding up an aisle to the altar with its magnificent crucifix. They then turn left to enter a low-slung room filled with cast-off crutches, a statue of the Santo Niño de Atocha, and photos of thousands of people who have been prayed for in the exact spot they are standing. An adjacent room, stark by contrast, contains little but a hole in the floor, known as the pocito. From this well in the earth, the Santuario’s half a million annual visitors gather handfuls of holy dirt, celebrated for two hundred years for its purported healing properties. The book tells the fascinating stories of the Pueblo and Nuevomexicano Catholic origins of the site and the building of the church, the eventual transfer of the property to the Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Fe, and the modern pilgrimage of believers alongside thousands of tourists. Drawing on extensive archival research as well as fieldwork in Chimayó, Brett Hendrickson examines the claims that various constituencies have made on the Santuario, its stories, dirt, ritual life, commercial value, and aesthetic character. The importance of the story of the Santuario de Chimayó goes well beyond its sacred dirt, to illuminate the role of Southwestern Hispanics and Catholics in American religious history and identity. The healing powers and marvel of the Santuario shine through the pages of Hendrickson’s book, allowing readers of all kinds to feel like they have stepped inside an institution in American and religious history.

In these reflections on the dichos of the Chimayó Valley in northern New Mexico native son Don J. Usner has written a memoir that is also a valuable source of information on the rich language and culture of the region.

Taken together, these perspectives form a case study of the adaptability of a craft tradition to the modern world.

This is the story of the Trujillo weaving family of Chimayo, New Mexico, and the long history of a weaving tradition that begins with Spanish settlement in the region. Richly illustrated with examples of dynamic contemporary blankets, as well as some of the textiles and weavers who came before, the book chronicles how the craft evolved from a winter necessity into the celebrated art form that it is today.