The Resplendent Quetzal - an illusive bird but spotted on Guatemalan stamps and banknotes

Some of the stamps in  my late father's collection are the beautiful Guatemalan Quetzal bird stamps issued between 1881 - 7 .  These came to mind when planning a trip to Central America where we  visited Guatemala and hoped to catch sight of some of these beautiful birds, which are a symbol of the country, also appearing on the flag, and giving their name to the Guatemalan currency.


 The currency is also called the  Quetzal, and the bird appears  in flight on each note, as below.

Sadly we didn't see any real live Quetzals, but brought home some hand made beaded versions for the Christmas tree!

 Birds, including the Quetzal also appear on hand made textiles, produced throughout the country - more about  this to follow!
Historically, the  ancient Mayans used the feathers of the resplendent quetzal as decoration and these can be seen in some of the stone carvings in Mayan sites such as Tikal in Guatemala and Palenque in Mexico. It's always good to have a local guide who can point out these things,  as these ancient sculpted details, like the birds, are often very difficult to spot! On the right of this stone stella, if you look very carefully, you can see the tail feathers of the Qutezal which adorned the headress of Pakal, a Mayan emperor.

Familiar faces and artwork on Mexican Banknotes

I was excited to collect my Mexican currency and to find familiar faces on the 500 Peso notes! I'm always interested to know who's on my money but often the faces and places portrayed on foreign notes in particular are unfamiliar, as with the other values of this currency which will require further research.

Artists Frida Kahlo and her husband Diego Rivera are shown here together with  their famous artworks.

 Diego Rivera's painting  of a nude with Cala Lilies is a subject which he painted  many times. 

The painting shown below is The Love Embrace of the Universe, the Earth (Mexico), Myself, Diego and Senor Xolotl, painted in 1949 by Frida Kahlo. and appears on the reverse of the note .  The picture contains elements from ancient Mexican mythology, including day and night, the sun and moon and the earth goddess cihuacoatl.  One of Frida's favourite pets was a dog which also represents Senor  Xolotl, a Itzcuintli dog,  a being who guards the underworld.  She was very maternal towards her husband Diego  and said she wanted to hold him in her arms like a new-born baby, as in this painting.