Folktales of Mexico

La Calle de la Quemada (The Burnt Woman’s Street)

A view of Tetilla Guanajuato, where the “Burnt’s girl street” (La Quemada) is said to be located.

When Don Luis de Velasco I came to replace the Viceroy Don Antonio de Mendoza, Don Gonzalo Espinosa de Guevara and his daughter Beatriz lived in a big mansion. She had a beautiful face, lovely eyes, with skin as white as lilies. Her lustrous, silky hair fell from her shoulders and cascaded like a waterfall down her fine back. She was also gentle: she used to care for the sick and the injured and to help poor people.

With such a noble, generous soul, beauty, and a large fortune, it was easy to understand that she had plenty of handsome lovers. Many gentlemen and noblemen fought in front of Beatriz’s mansion, but she did not accept anyone.

Finally a gentleman arrived to the mansion—a man whose destiny chose him to be Beatriz’s husband. His name was Don Martín de Scópoli, Marquis of Piamonte and Franteschelo, a handsome Italian gentleman who loved Beatriz since the first time he saw her, and his love for her grew with passion.

He fought bravely with every gentleman that wanted to marry Beatriz, showing his strong and eternal love for her. For this reason many gentleman proved themselves fighting for Beatriz trying to defeat the impertinent Italian man. Don Martín fought days and nights under the moonlight, and he always won.

When the sun rose, the police passing through Beatriz’s street would always find a dead or injured gentlemen, caused by the sword of the Italian suitor.

Beatriz loved Don Martin immensely because of his demeanor and handsomeness and because of his lovely words. One night, after she had prayed to Santa Lucia (a martyr virgin took out her eyes so as to not be a temptation), she made a terrible decision that would make Don Martin Scúpoli love her no more. The next day, after completing many tasks, such as helping poor people with medicines and food, she confirmed that her father had left and carried to her room a brazier, in which she put charcoal and lit a fire. Suddenly the flames filled the room, and the heat became intense. She prayed to Santa Lucía, and saying Don Martin’s name, she knelt down and put her beautiful face over the brazier.

A smell of burning flesh spread throughout the room, taking out the fresh smell of jasmine and almonds. After a few minutes later, Beatriz screamed and fainted next to the brazier. Father Marcos de Jesus and Gracia, who was a confidant of Beatriz, heard Beatriz’s scream and ran into the house. He found Beatriz on the floor, he lifted her with care and tried to put some herbs and vinegar on her burnt face, asking her why she had done it.

She explained to him that with this event, Don Martin would finish with the fights and he would stop loving her. After she told him the reasons, Father Marcos explained to Don Martin what had happened. The Italian gentleman hurried to be where his lover was. He found her sitting on an armchair with a black veil that covered her face. The veil was spotted with blood and burnt flesh.

Very carefully he took off the veil from his lover’s face, but he did not jump back terrified when he saw her. He was worried, looking at her beautiful white face burnt by the cruel flames. Under the firmly arched eyebrows, there were two holes with burnt eyelids. Her cheeks were open craters where blood drained and her lips which had been so sumptous, worthy of a passionate kiss, were now a hole which formed a horrible grin. After he saw this, the Marquis of Piamonte knelt down and said with tenderness:

"Ah, Beatriz, I love you not for your beauty, but for your goodness. You are a noble, generous lady, and your soul is pure."

Tears fell with these words, and both cried with love and tenderness.

The Marquis continued, "When your father comes back, I will ask for your hand in marriage."

The wedding of Beatriz and the Marquis de Piedmont was held at the temple “The Profesa” and was the most sensational event of those times. Don Gonzalo Guevara Espinosa spent his fortune on the celebrations and the Marquis of Piedmont gave the bride dresses, jewelry and furniture brought from Italy.

Beatriz arrived to the altar with a white veil on her face in order to avoid the mad curiosity of the people. After this she only went outside to go to the nearby church to hear mass, accompanied by her husband.

Since that day, the street where Beatriz house was once located is now called the Burnt Girl’s Street.

El Callejon Del Beso (The Alley of the Kiss)

This is a sad love story of two young people who lived and died in Guanajuato,Mexico: Carmen and Luis. She was as beautiful and pure as an angel, about 20, lovely and single. He was handsome, about 28, tan and tall with an arrogant demeanor, adorned with the best moral qualities, hard-working, honest. With those conditions Luis met Carmen, and as soon as they saw each other, they fell in love. From that moment Luis, went frequently in the evening to Carmen’s house after work. And she, with the same feelings, stood on her balcony, beautiful as Dulcinea, white, with big and expressive eyes, in a beautiful and unique manila dress that her father gave her, so when Luis passed by her house she gave him a beautiful smile.

So the weeks passed by, until Luis dared to greet her and the young lady accepted his greeting with a gentle smile. The next day he started a conversation, shy at the beginning, but polite, as any courtship, after that like any couple of lovers with, love phrases and promises. They quickly started to think of a big wedding, blessed by her mother Madame Matilde, a virtuous and dignified mother that had accepted the relationship between her daughter Carmen and Luis. But Carmen’s father did not approve it, because he had already planned marry Ana to a friend of his, which was rich and lived on backing Spain. So Madame Matilde thought that the relationship between Carmen and Luis would probably end, and she decided to tell her husband about the casual meetings that Carmen and Luis had on Carmen’s balcony.

One day Carmen’s father saw the two lovers talking, and he forbade Luis from seeing his daughter, also threatening to send Carmen to a convent if she continued seeing Luis.

Neither Carmen nor Luis accepted the attitude that Carmen’s father took, so Luis decided to reestablish their relationship behind Carmen’s father’s back. Luis planned to rent a room in the house next door where there was a balcony in front of her balcony in which they could talk without being seen, so they could plan a way to escape and be happy.

So the weeks passed by, hiding their courtship from the sun. They only looked at each other in the moonlight from their balconies while Carmen’s father slept. Unfortunately the tragedy came. One night Carmen’s father woke up and took a knife from his bureau and in blind fury walked to the balcony of his daughter, he surprised his daughter and he buried the knife into her chest. She died in her lover’s arms in the white moonlight. Luis took his lover’s white hand and two tears fell down. With a big kiss Luis said good bye to his eternal love: Carmen who died on the Alley of the kiss.

The Powder of the Viceroy

In the offices of the Viceroy of New Spain was an officer named Don Bonifacio. He was a very lazy guy. His payment was the necessary to sustain his wife, his sons and his house. He was always angry, bored, resting in his armchair, and waiting for his meals.

There was no game of the Royal Lottery in which he wasn’t participating. However he never won anything. One day he decided to send a letter to the Viceroy, but what was this letter about?

After sending that letter, every Friday Don Bonifacio walked to the Central Palace and waited in a corner where shadow covered him from the intense sun. The Viceroy, ridding in his white horse, approached every Saturday to Don Bonifacio and gave him a box covered with a little of silver. Usually Marteseo. Wilkins took the box back to

Bonifacio was a powerful friend of the Virrey… people gave Don Bonifacio money and gifts to be his friend.

What they didn’t know is that Don Bonifacio was not friend of the Viceroy… he was a lazy worker with the great idea of writing to the Viceroy what follows:

“Dear Viceroy… It would be a pleasure if you were able to give me a little of your soil that is inside your palace. I have seen that in your soil everything is green and profitable. Would you give me the honor of having my crops as beautiful as yours?”

The golden box contained only soil from the Viceroy's palace.

It’s said that Bonifacio became a very rich and powerful person just because of the magic powder of the Viceroy

Pregnant woman and the Eclipse

In Mexico it is believed that exposure of a pregnant woman to an eclipse will cause her infant to have a cleft lip or palate.

The belief originated with the Aztecs, who thought that an eclipse occurred because a bite had been taken out of the moon. If the pregnant woman viewed the eclipse, her infant would have a bite taken out of its mouth.

An obsidian knife was placed on the woman's abdomen before going out at night to protect her.

This belief remains intact hundreds of years later, the only difference being that today a metal key or safety pin is used for protection.