Guatemalan Maya Centre

The Centre operates as a small cultural and educational centre dedicated to the Maya of Guatemala.

We run a varied programme of topical films and lectures to compliment the free exhibitions and there are more specialised facilities for students and academics: the textile collection (showing the development of Guatemalan Maya costume from the turn of the century to the present day) is one of the largest of its kind with around 7000 textiles. We also house a reference library of approximately 2000 books and 100 videos which cover all aspects of Guatemala and the Maya.

The majority of floorspace is dedicated to colourful tableaux showing daily life and dress from Maya Indian villages of highland Guatemala. The textiles on exhibit are drawn from the Centre's collection and display a range of techniques including ikat, embroidery, tapestry and brocading. The exhibitions change annually.

The Centre was founded in 1990 by Krystyna Deuss, author of "Indian Costumes from Guatemala", who spends 5 months each year in Guatemala continuing her research into the customs of the Highland Maya. Jamie Marshall, curator of the Centre's collections, is in the process of documenting the textiles.