Mural painted on Lethem court building to celebrate Heritage month
In observance of Amerindian Heritage Month, the Supreme Court of Judicature this past Monday commissioned a mural at the Lethem Magistrate’s Court in the Rupununi Magisterial District, Region 9.
According to the Supreme Court’s website, the mural is an original piece sketched and painted by four grade 11 students of the St. Ignatius Secondary School, and captures their individual interpretations in paying tribute to the indigenous people’s way of life through art.
“It symbolizes Amerindian heritage and culture,” the Court said.
Each part of the mural is symbolic of Amerindian heritage and culture.
According to the website, the benab at the center of the mural depicts unity within the indigenous community and signifies the gathering/meeting place for indigenous people to create their crafts, complete chores, and live.
The trees represent Amerindian lands and vegetation; while the man standing with the arrow and bow holding the fish symbolizes him as the head of the home who provides for his family by hunting and fishing for food.
That, the description of the mural says, represents the way of life of the Indigenous people who are “very self-sufficient.”
The woman under the benab represents the mother figure of the home, while the female under the tree carrying a bag symbolizes indigenous women in the community who also assist in gathering food.
The man engaged in craft-making represents the creative skills they possess in making various handmade crafts ranging from earrings, baskets, clothing, and more.
The image next to the man making craft is a totem pole made from feathers and beads. Villagers use the pole to create music by shaking while people sing. This is often done when villages gather to tell stories.
The lines on the totem pole represent the Takutu River.
The Court said on its website that the mural was an initiative of acting Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards.
It was commissioned by High Court Registrar Sueanna Lovell.
The four students who drew the mural were Alissa Rogers, Geveron Moses, Aiude Pedro and Lee Michael, under the supervision of two of their teachers, Romario Cupido and Devon Rodrigues.
The court said as a show of its appreciation for the “great work” done by the students
and their teachers, and in an effort to demonstrate its “social responsibility to the community that gives our court a home in Region 9,” a quantity of textbooks, art supplies and sports gear was donated for the benefit of the students.