La Catrina
sterling silver, brass, copper and fine silver
20 cm x 7 cm
La Catrina is a chatelaine jewel inspired by the Mexican Dìa de Muertos. The belt element is a decorated skull, representing the figure of ‘La Catrina’, who goes back to the Aztec goddess of the underworld, Mictēcacihuātl. The flickering teeth that hang down from the skull refer to this goddess, who was often shown with her mouth open, swallowing the stars during the day. The jewel has several chains ending in amulets that are linked to ideas of vanitas and time: a spiral, an hourglass, arms of a clock and the moon phases.
