This is how the montecristi hat is made, the most famous montubia craft in the world

When the Spanish conquistadors Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro They arrived from Panama to what is now the Ecuadorian Coast, in 1526, they observed that the indigenous people used “tocas” on their heads, like the nuns in Europe, which looked like bat wings.

In 1630, a native named Sunday Choez, Together with the Creole Francisco Delgado, they combined the technique and shape of the headdress with that of the Spanish hats. Thus was born the iconic hat of the world: the montecristi.

Botanical expeditions sent by the King of Spain Carlos IV to South America, from 1788 to 1798, were led by the famous botanists Hipólito Ruiz (1754-1840) and José Pavón (1754-1817), and later by Juan Tafalla (1755-1811). They discover more than a thousand plant species detailed in their books Peruvian flora and chilensis and Flora huayaquilensis. Among them they describe the plant toquilla strawand give it the name of carludovica palmata, in honor of King Carlos IV and his wife, María Luisa, who is spelled Ludovica in Latin. They name the species as palmatasince it looks like a palm, but it is not.

The aforementioned botanical expeditions verified that this toquilla plant was native to Ecuador, despite the fact that it is present from Central America to Peru, due to its diversity and abundance in our country, and because it was very common in the coastal indigenous cultures and also in the amazonianwell they used it for hats the first and to roof houses, baskets, fishing nets and as food the seconds.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the montecristi or jipijapa hat was a source of social, cultural and economic development in Ecuador. Its production expanded to Cuenca, and in 1854 the income from the export of hats exceeded that of cocoa. And the great leap was made later, when thousands of hats were exported for the construction workers of the Panama Canal (1904-1914).

But who makes it fashionable in the world is the president of the United States Theodore Roosevelt, who on November 14, 1906 visits the construction of the Panama Canal. The first president of that country, Don Manuel Amador Guerrero, with family ties in Guayaquil, presents him with a fine montecristi, news that spreads throughout the world.

On December 5, 2012, Unesco declared the montecristi hat as an intangible cultural heritage of humanityin the great hands of the artisans who weave this unique and extraordinary art.

The process of creating a montecristi hat, and its quality standards

A few days ago, with my friend from Zamora, Guillermo Hasing, we had the opportunity to visit Pile, in the province of Manabí, the main and oldest town and manufacturing center of the famous montecristislocated very close to the city that gives them their famous name, where we were able to observe the work and tradition that the population of this community has ancestrally carried out, where 80% of the thousand inhabitants dedicate themselves to this art to produce crafts with great effort. most famous montubia in the world.

And we saw the harvest of the heads of the toquilla and then the other steps for making a fine hat, such as:

1. Hit the buds on the ground and then…

2. Tearing them with fingernails or toenails.

3. Washing and cooking the bundles of straw.

4. Drying.

5. The firewood baked, to bleach straw and remove chlorophyll; and then…

6. Weaving in a very strained and uncomfortable position, taking up to 4-5 months per hat, depending on its quality.

The quality of a montecristi hat is measured in degrees or threads per square inch, being the finest grade 60 (sixty threads per square inch), used by artists and can cost thousands of dollars.

I thought my old montecristi was very fine, but the expert Montubio artisans told me that it didn’t even reach grade 15!

For years I wanted to visit Pile, and I finally had this great experience, and they even taught me how to weave a little piece of a montecristi hat. The Government of Ecuador has the obligation to reactivate the School of Hat Craftsmen of Pile, which today does not work due to lack of government support.

We will be back to Pile for a fine 61 grade montecristi! (EITHER)