DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS

Altar de Muertos (Guadalajara: Padi, 2009)

For me, Halloween usually conjures up images of goblins and witches, scary-looking carved pumpkins, Mischief Night capers, and enough candy corn to make my teeth hurt. But a recent trip to Mexico introduced me to a different autumn tradition, a more personal and folkloric celebration of the dearly departed. Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a life affirming fiesta. Families and friends gather in cemeteries during the last days of October through November 2 to honor loved ones with decorated altars and offerings (ofrendas) of holiday candies and favorite foods, incense, candles, water, bread, papel picado (colorful paper cutouts), and flowers (the most traditional flower used is the marigold). Personal items may also be displayed. This annual ritual enables families and friends to visit together, care for the grave, and honor ancestors.

Wandering the old town, I stopped at a small art shop, and found hanging just inside the door an intricately designed paper altar. This magical creation was the perfect acquisition to honor the lives of two of the Library's dearly departed. And so our Altar de Muertos is displayed in the Rare Book Room, in remembrance of Nat Schmulowitz, beloved founder of the Schmulowitz Collection of Wit & Humor, and his devoted sister and benefactor, Kay Schmulowitz.

Nat Schmulowitz, 1889-1966

The following titles, and many others, are available at the San Francisco Public Library. Try a subject search for All Souls' Day:

Annual El Día de los Muertos Celebration, San Francisco, California / Galería de la Raza (San Francisco: Galería de la Raza, 1989)

El Corazón de la Muerte: Altars and Offerings for Days of the Dead by Chiori Santiago (Heyday Books; Oakland Museum of California, 2005)

Days of the Dead: Mexico's Festival of Communion With the Departed by John Greenleigh (Collins Publishers San Francisco, 1991)

The Mexican Day of the Dead: An Anthology, compiled by Chloë Sayer (Shambhala Redstone Editions, 1994)

Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead by Stanley Brandes (Blackwell, 2006)

A Través de los Ojos del Alma: Día de Muertos en Mexico/Through the Eyes of the Soul: Day of the Dead in Mexico by Mary J. Andrade (La Oferta Review Newspaper, 1998)