The Mixtec purple
From the threads dyed in Huatulco to the pozahuancos of Pinotepa de Don Luis
Retrato de Mauro Habaduc Avendaño Luis, tintorero de hilo con caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
The loom awaits at home
In the home-workshop of Mauro Habacuc Avendaño Luis in Pinotepa de Don Luis, skeins of an impossible purple hang. Each one represents 300 snails, six months of work, a journey to Huatulco.
Prendas elaboradas por Mauro Habaduc Avendaño Luis, tintorero de hilo con caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
Three colors for a Pozahuanco
Snail purple, indigo blue, cochineal red. The chromatic trinity of Mixtec women. "Back then there was no colored thread, only these existed." Purple is the only one that doesn't need a mordant, the only one that never fades, the rarest.
Socorro Paulina López San Luis mostrando un pozahuanco mixteco (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
From dyers to weavers
The 14 dyers from the Purple Snail Society bring the threads, and the women of Pinotepa de Don Luis transform them. "We gave them the threads so they could make their traditional clothing." A complete pozahuanco requires eight skeins. Last year, Mauro brought three.
Retrato de Mauro Habaduc Avendaño Luis, tintorero de hilo con caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
The only weaving village
"Pinotepa de Don Luis is the only town around here that still weaves on backstrap looms," Mauro explains. They used to supply all the nearby indigenous villages: Jicayán, Pinotepa Nacional, Huaxpaltepec, Mechoacán, Chayuco. Now, they barely make enough for the local weavers.
Teófila Avendaño López trabajando en telar de cintura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
Hands that knit in the same house
In Mauro's house, the women in his family transform purple threads into textiles. "People come and see them, and then they sell their things when they're finished." The entire cycle happens under the same roof: the threads arrive from Huatulco, and the women of the community weave them.
Detalle de un pozahuanco mixteco (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
The colour of scarcity
The skeins of yarn today are no longer pure purple. "It's mixed with urine because there aren't any snails left to dye a properly made skein." Scarcity forces them to use everything: the first drops that used to be discarded now also add dye.
Prendas elaboradas por Mauro Habaduc Avendaño Luis, tintorero de hilo con caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
We're not selling because there's nothing to sell.
"Who wouldn't want to sell? But if there's nothing to sell, you can't." The skeins hanging in their house are precious treasures. Before, they sold to other villages, exporting their purple identity. Now they save every thread for the few weavers who still work with natural dyes.
Detalle de una madeja de hilo teñida con caracol púrpura y una concha de caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
The purple that runs out
Before, Pinotepa de Don Luis clothed the entire Mixteca region in purple. Mauro's skeins traveled from town to town, from loom to loom. Now, in his home-workshop, he counts the few skeins he has left like someone counting the days remaining for a tradition.
A tradition worth rescuing
Each purple thread is a reminder: 300 snails that are becoming increasingly difficult to find, eight days of walking that turned into six hours to reach increasingly empty rocks.
A tradition in danger
The purple that adorns Mixtec women remains the same ancient color, but now each strand tells the story of an abundance transformed into memory.
Retrato de Mauro Habaduc Avendaño Luis, tintorero de hilo con caracol púrpura (2025-10-11) by Mario Vázquez Sosa Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico
Saving a tradition
In Pinotepa de Don Luis, Mauro and his son Rafa protect what remains of their ancestors’ traditions, giving life to and trying to preserve a practice that still has a chance to endure.
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