Stone tool for paper making

Stone tool for paper making, length 7.5 cms., stone, Mexica/Aztec, c. 1350-1521 CE, Collection Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen, Amsterdam

Pre-Columbian paper, amatl, was made from the bark of the fig tree. It is comparable to textiles made from bark cloth, which we find in many cultures. Coated with a layer of plaster, it served as the basis for pictorial manuscripts. Amatl is still produced today.

From Aztecs, eds. Doris Kurella, Martin Berger and Inés de Castro, with INAH, Mexico - catalogue for the exhibition Azteken, Linden Museum, Stuttgart, Hirmer Publishers, Germany, 2019, p. 298.

Photo by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore.