Traditional San Cristobal forged iron crosses
	Forged iron and carved wood bookcases with Maya or Christian designs
	Iron keychains in animal and other designs called "nahuales" or animal souls
	Other forged iron products include: candelabras, bathroom and kitchen fixtures, and coffee tables

THE SAN CRISTOBAL FORGED-IRON CROSS

The Chiapas iron cross is a traditional artisan craft of San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas.  Since Colonial times, people in San Cristobal placed hand forged iron crosses on their roofs as a blessing and for magical protection against earthquakes and other natural disasters.  Cloudforest Initiatives ornamental iron cross is a Maya and Christian symbol of peace, justice and hope.

According to Maya symbolism a cross is the center of everything, the heart of the earth, the union of male and female in the universe.  The San Cristobal cross is a foliated iron cross, decorated as if it had flowers hanging from it or branches growing from its ends.  This is because the cross is a tree of life: it is the ceiba tree, sacred tree of the Maya. In the center of the iron cross there is a ceiba flower, symbol of the Heart of the Sky/Heart of the Earth.  The Christian symbolism in the iron cross is a depiction of the Passion of Christ, and therefore, a symbol for hope and resurrection. 

The following  images are placed over the cross: A sword and a heart indicate how Jesus was pierced.  The ladder is the one used to remove Jesus from the cross. The rooster reminds us that the cock crowed three times after Peter's three denials of Jesus.  The sun indicates that Jesus died during the day and the moon that Jesus rose in the night.  The dove, the symbol for peace, is also the bird that brought the word of Christ's resurrection to the world, a symbol for hope and rebirth.  The scale is the symbol for justice.

There are three types of iron crosses: wall-hanging cross, tabletop cross with three legs, and candelabra with a turtle base.

The candelabra cross has Maya symbolism: The base is the sacred turtle that holds the world with its legs, head and tail forming a horizontal cross.  Four candles are placed in the four cardinal points with the four colors of Mayan sacred corn: red, black, yellow and white.  Maya people kneel towards the four cardinal points, one at a time, when they pray.

VAMAYAP FORGED IRON AND CARVED WOOD ORNAMENTAL BOOKCASES

These bookcases, both beautiful and functional, combine two traditional crafts from the Chiapas highlands: ornamental forged iron work and wood carving.  Each unique bookcase is identified by a handcrafted Maya number system.  Vamayap bookcases come in two basic designs: an ornamental Christian cross or a sacred Maya ceiba tree. The bookcase frame is made of forged iron work with a central axis in the shape of a cross or a tree with iron images of Christian or Maya symbolism riveted in place.  These symbols are repeated in wood on the hand carved front panels of the bookshelves. The word "vamayap" in the lower panel means "value added Maya products" as well as "Mayas in movement".  It symbolizes the history of Maya people from the ancient past to the activist present with a design of a Maya walker and footprints.

The ornamental cross bookcases have the symbolism and images of the San Cristobal cross.  The Maya symbolic universe is depicted in the ceiba tree bookcases.  The ceiba is the most sacred tree for the Maya because its roots reach into the underworld and its branches hold the heavens.  The ceiba tree also has the shape of a human being, with a trunk that is wider in the middle.  Riveted on the tree are images of animals, flowers and birds sacred to the Maya, with these designs repeated on the wood panels.

The bookcases come in several sizes and different types of wood: pine, red cedar, tropical cedar, mahogany, oak and guanacastle, which is a tropical wood.  All bookcases can be disassembled for easier handling and packaging.

"NAHUALES" IRON KEY CHAINS

Cloudforest Initiatives "nahuales" key chains are made of hand hammered forged iron in shapes of traditional Maya animals and objects: rabbit, parrot, lizard, dog, turkey, fish, corn, sun, moon, ceiba flower and cross. They are called "nahuales" which means "animal soul."  Indigenous people of Mesoamerica, including the Maya, believe that our lives are linked to the life of an animal, which is our companion, the animal that looks after us, and who appears in our dreams.  This is our "nahual" or animal soul.  These beautiful handmade iron key chains can be used as lucky charms, with the animal or object of our preference.