Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189 Public Domain. Release under the CC BY Attribution license--http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/--Credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library; From the California Historical Society Collection at the University of Southern California Send requests to address or e-mail given USC Libraries Special Collections specol@usc.edu
Description
Photograph of an effigy hanging at New Almaden Mining Camp, ca.1930 (1900?). A large group of people is gathered around a wooden gallows at center. Two dummies are suspended by ropes from the crossbeam of the gallows, an effigy of Judas on the left and one of the Devil on the right. There is a wooden building at left, and several other small wooden houses on the hill behind the crowd. "Spy Wednesday, the Wednesday before Easter, was considered a day of justice to Judas by the Mexican folk. In the morning, a procession followed a wagon carrying an effigy of Judas, (mens clothes stuffed with straw and firecrackers with a mask for the face) and also an effigy of the Devil wearing a long black cloak and carrying rosary beads. (They believed the Devil dressed himself in priest's robes to taunt Judas into betraying Jesus--in other words, 'the wolf in sheep's clothing). After going around the town gathering everyone, the processional hung these two effigies and set firecrackers off and finally burned the effigies. Sometimes, instead of straw stuffing, they would use one hundred pounds of flour and jab it until all the flour spilled out. Some people, not knowing the Devil's place, used to say 'Mrs. Judas', but according to Church history, all plays had the Devil dressed in the Priest's robes, carrying a whip in one hand and rosary beads in the other, jesting of how we should be able to know the Devil in cloth or cover". -- Mrs. Constance Kambish, Secretary-Treasurer, New Almaden Historical Society.
Type
image
Format
2 photographs : photonegative, photoprint, b&w 21 x 26 cm., 13 x 17 cm. negatives (photographic) photographic prints photographs
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