{"id":2736,"date":"2026-01-12T10:11:31","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T09:11:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/?page_id=2736"},"modified":"2026-02-23T12:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T11:54:10","slug":"the-taino-cotton-cemi","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/routes\/the-taino-cotton-cemi\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ta\u00edno cotton cem\u00ed"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Routes<\/h4>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The Ta\u00edno cotton cem\u00ed<\/strong><\/h1>\n

A unique artefact in the world<\/h2>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
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Edited by Cecilia Pennacini <\/strong> (University of Turin)<\/h4>\n

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Scroll editing by Alfonsina Pagano <\/strong>(CNR ISPC)<\/h4>\n

Revision & accessibility by Alfonsina Pagano <\/strong>(CNR ISPC)<\/h4>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>
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The cotton cem\u00ed of Turin is a unique survivor from the Indigenous Caribbean world, an object whose fragility makes its very existence exceptional. Crafted from perishable materials such as cotton and organic fibers, it endured only because it was preserved in the rare shelter of a dry cave, escaping the tropical environments where such objects usually vanish. For the Ta\u00edno peoples, cem\u00edes were not simple representations but living spiritual agents, central to political authority and religious practice, capable of mediating between humans, ancestors, and the spirit world.<\/p>\n

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When Europeans arrived in the Caribbean at the end of the fifteenth century, they encountered Ta\u00edno societies that were highly structured and sophisticated. Governed by caciques and cacicas, these communities controlled vast territories, practiced intensive agriculture, and organized collective life around ritual and belief. Major decisions were taken during cohoba ceremonies, where leaders sought guidance from the cem\u00edes, whose presence gave voice to forces beyond the human realm. Originating from Amazonian migrations centuries earlier, the Ta\u00edno shared a common spiritual system centered on these sacred figures.<\/p>\n

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Christopher Columbus and his contemporaries quickly grasped the importance of cem\u00edes. Through the writings of Ram\u00f3n Pan\u00e9, the first ethnographer of the New World, European readers gained insight into Ta\u00edno mythology and ritual life, even as colonization violently disrupted Indigenous societies. Alliances, resistance, and negotiations shaped the early encounters between Ta\u00edno leaders and the Spanish, while cem\u00edes remained objects of reverence and protection.<\/p>\n

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Centuries later, the cotton cem\u00ed resurfaced in Santo Domingo, entering private collections and attracting the attention of scholars and artists. Its journey from the Caribbean to Genoa, and later to Turin, reflects a broader history of collecting, study, and reinterpretation. Donated in 1927 to what is now the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography of the University of Turin, the cem\u00ed became a focal point for research into Ta\u00edno culture and Indigenous Caribbean heritage.<\/p>\n

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Today, the cem\u00ed continues to speak across time. Contemporary Neota\u00edno communities are reclaiming and reimagining ancestral traditions, while scientific investigation has revealed the object\u2019s internal structure and materials through non-invasive technologies. This knowledge now converges in a digital twin: an immersive, interactive representation that allows the cem\u00ed to be explored in unprecedented detail. Through this phygital experience, the cotton cem\u00ed connects ancient belief systems, colonial histories, and contemporary technologies, offering new ways to encounter a living heritage.<\/p>\n

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Explore the scrolling journey to learn more!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Highlights from the route<\/h4>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>
\"Cem\u00ed\"<\/a>

Cem\u00ed<\/a><\/h3><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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References<\/h4>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>
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    Cronau R., 1892, Amerika: Die Geschichte seiner Entdeckung von der \u00e4ltesten bis auf die neueste Zeit<\/i> Leipzig.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Doro Garetto T., Ligabue Stricker F., Masali M., Scala A., 1993, \u201cStudio con metodologie avanzate e classiche di un reperto museale: lo Zem\u00ec de Algodon (collezione Marro, Torino)\u201d, Antropologia contemporanea<\/i>, vol. 16, n.1-4, pp. 111-114<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Fewkes J., 1892, \u201cOn Zemes from Santo Domingo\u201d, American Anthropologist<\/i>, 4, pp. 167-176.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Girotti M. and Meaglia D., 2001, \u201cZem\u00ec in cotone del Museo di Antropologi di Torino: storia del ritrovamento e descrizione\u201d in Girotti M. e Meaglia D. (a cura di), Zem\u00ec a Torino<\/i>, Museo di Antropologia ed Etnografia dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 di Torino.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Guaraldo A. and Thiemer-Sachse U., 2013, \u201cA proposito del \u2018cem\u00ed di cotone di Torino\u201d. Cem\u00ed: cosa significa questa parola taino? E quello custodito a Torino \u00e8 veramente un cem\u00ed?, Bollettino della Societ\u00e0 Piemontese di Archeologia<\/i>, n.61-62, pp. 33-62;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Guaraldo A. and Thiemer-Sachse U., 2015, \u201cLo Zemi di cotone di Torino\u201d, Tepee<\/i>, n. 47, pp. 65-80;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Guidi A., 1990, \u201cLes zemis des Antilles. Palazzo Carignano, Turin\u201d, Primitifs,<\/i> n. 1, pp. 41-52;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Guidi A. and Appendino M.G., 1973, \u201cI Taino e i loro zemi\u201d, Rivista di Etnografia, n. 28, pp. 3-11;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Kerchache J. (ed. by), 1994, L\u2019art des sculptures Tainos, chefs-d\u2019oeuvre des grandes Antilles pr\u00e9colombiennes<\/i>, Mus\u00e9e du Petit Palais, Paris, catalogue, L\u2019Art Taino<\/i>, Paris Musees Ed.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    MAET (ed. by), 2001, Zem\u00ec a Torino<\/i>, Museo di Antropologia ed Etnografia dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 di Torino.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Martina M.C., Cesarani F., Boano R., Rabino Massa E., Venturi C.C., Gandini G., 2010, \u201cScenes from the Past: Multidetector CT of an Antillean Zem\u00ec Idol\u201d, Radiographics,<\/i> n. 30, pp. 1993-1999;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Masali M., Pia G.E., 1991, \u201cI materiali ta\u00ecno del Museo di Antropologia di Torino: lo Zem\u00ed di cotone\u201d in Gli Indios di Hispaniola prima della colonizzazione europea, L\u2019Universo,<\/i> suppl. al n. 1, pp.85-90;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    J. Ostapkowicz and L. Newsom, \u201cGods\u2026adorned with the embroiderer\u2019s needle\u201d: the materials, making and meaning of a Taino cotton reliquary,\u201d Latin American Antiquity, <\/i>23, no. 3, (2012), pp. 300-326.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Ostakpowicz J. and Pennacini C., 2024, \u201c<\/i><\/span>Collecting \u2018Remembrances of these Isles\u2019: Tracing the Post-1880 History of a Ta\u00edno Cotton Cem\u00ed in the Dominican Republic and Italy\u201d, Latin American Antiquity,<\/i> n. 35(1), pp. 111-127.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Pennacini C., 2021, \u201cGli Zem\u00ed di Torino: un percorso biografico\u201d in Arizza M. (ed. by), <\/span>Trattamento e restituzione del Patrimonio culturale. Oggetti, resti umani, conoscenza<\/i>, Cnr Edizioni, Roma, pp. 159-173.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Pennacini C., Zingari G. (ed. by), 2025, Digital cem<\/span>\u00ed. Exploring a unique Ta\u00edno artifact in the 21st century, Torino, Editris.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Rigoli A. (ed. by),1992, Due \u201cmondi\u201d a confronto. I segni della storia<\/i>, Genova, Palazzo Ducale, Catalogue Ed. Colombo.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

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    <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Routes The Ta\u00edno cotton cem\u00ed A unique artefact in the world Edited by Cecilia Pennacini (University of Turin)   Scroll editing by Alfonsina Pagano (CNR ISPC) Revision & accessibility by Alfonsina Pagano (CNR ISPC) The cotton cem\u00ed of Turin is a unique survivor from the...","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":1062,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[129],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2736","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","category-routes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2736","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2736"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2736\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3203,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2736\/revisions\/3203"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.knotproject.it\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}