Building your own Día de los Muertos altar can be a wonderful way to honor a loved one that’s passed. Mexican communities celebrate Day of the Dead on November 1 and 2, but they set up their altars days in advance. Altars for animals, for example, are known to be placed as early as October 28, a day when beloved pets are remembered.
No matter when you choose to display your altar, putting one together is a fun, creative project to do by yourself or with friends and family. A true Day of the Dead altar should include a couple nods to the authentic ones built in Mexico, but it can be as modest or elaborate as you’d like it to be. In a leisurely hour or two, you can get started with just a handful of boxes and fabrics.
From flowers to candles, we’ll take a look below at the many items you can include to pay tribute to the ones you love.
Want to take your Spanish to the next level to connect with family, friends, and beyond? Rosetta Stone makes learning a new language fun and engaging with immersive bite-sized lessons, immediate pronunciation feedback, and more!
>> Build your basic Spanish vocabulary with these 100+ essential Spanish words and phrases!
What belongs on a Day of the Dead altar?
Día de los Muertos altars vary considerably in terms of what’s on or around them, but nearly all of them will have Day of the Dead flowers and bread. Here are the basic items that may be included on a Day of the Dead altar. We’ll cover the details on these in the sections below.
- Calaveras (skulls) and calacas (skeletons)
- Candles
- La Catrina
- Cempasúchil (marigolds) and other flowers
- Copal
- Edible arrangements
- Papel picado
- Pictures of the deceased
- Salt
- Tapete de arena
1. Calavera (skulls) and calacas (skeletons)
Calaveras are one way of representing the memory of a deceased person, but they’re also a reminder to the living that death is an inevitable part of life. Calacas play a similar role but are more apt to poke fun at death, since, with their joints of string or metal, they can be made to dance.
Whether it’s a calavera or calaca, most of these bone-like objects are made of clay, chocolate, or sugar. They are whimsical in nature and often painted with bright colors and even flowers. Some of the candy skulls can be eaten, a palpable recognition that death can be sweet not bitter. With levity, Calaveras and calacas remind us that death comes for all of us, no matter our social status in the world.
>> Learn more about calaveras in our complete guide to Día de los Muertos in Mexico!
2. Candles
Although there’s a tendency during the time of Día de los Muertos to buy new votive candles, any candle will do. They are generally lit in the evening, giving a warm glow to the altar. But they’re not just for the living! Candle light is said to guide the spirits back to their former residences, symbolizing hope and faith in their return. Some communities light a candle for each loved one who is honored at the altar.
3. La Catrina
Invented by José Guadalupe Posada, La Catrina is one of the most recognized faces of Día de los Muertos. Her image, a skeleton dressed in the clothing of the early 1900s elite, was a criticism of upper class women in Porfiriato, Rivera. The image was popularized in the 1930s and 1940s, and she even sits in the middle of one of Diego Rivera’s most notable murals.
You’ll see her and her male counterparts, catrines, donning fancy dresses, suits, and hats. Small sculptures of these images may be placed on your altar, a fun way to remember that even when someone can dress in elegant clothes, they can’t buy their way out of death.
4. Cempasúchil (marigolds)
Cempasúchil is a word adopted from Nahuatl that refers to the Mexican marigold, a flower that blooms in many shades of yellow or orange. It also has many forms, some domestic and some wild. They are the quintessential flower of Día de los Muertos and can always be found on Day of the Dead altars. Ancient indigenous communities of Mexico believed that marigolds’ strong yet pleasant scent called the dead from the underworld, hence their ubiquity on the holiday.
You can use these versatile flowers in multiple ways beyond having them in a vase. Cut off the stems to use the heads or remove their petals to decorate the altar’s surface as a finishing touch. Cempesúchil heads are sometimes turned into garlands as well.
Other common Day of the Dead flowers like cockscomb, baby’s breath, carnations, gladiolas, and chrysanthemums are perfect accompaniments to cempesúchil on any altar.
>> See what Día de los Muertos celebrations look like in Guadalajara, Mexico.
5. Copal
Copal is a traditional incense that was offered to the gods in pre-Hispanic times across Mexico and Central America. It comes from the copal tree, which has also been used for centuries as a popular material in indigenous art. Copal incese is still used in ceremonies and on special occasions to clean the air of bad spirits to prepare for the arrival of the dead. If you don’t have copal, a smudge stick or incense will do.
6. Edible arrangements
Nothing says te amo (I love you) in Spanish like a home-cooked meal. Food is an essential part of the Day of the Dead altar, with the most iconic food being pan de muerto, bread of the dead. Coming in all shapes, sizes, and colors depending on where you buy it, pan de muerto is often round and egg-based. This is the one food item on the altar that most people buy rather than make, but if you do decide to make it, there are plenty of recipes to choose from!
Most families also cook the favorite main dish of their beloved and put a plate of it on the altar. This may be chicken with mole, enchiladas, tamales, pozole, xec (a jicama and citrus salad), and rice. Since these are elaborate dishes, it’s not worth making just one plate of food. Living persons will get to partake of whatever’s left after cooking a full recipe.
Sweets, fresh fruit, and nuts are part of the next category. Mandarinas (mandarin oranges) and plátanos (bananas) are popular fresh fruits to include on the altar. People may make candied fruit or dulce de calabaza, a slow-cooked squash simmered in brown sugar and spices. You can put a dish of this on your altar to entice the spirits along with a plate of roasted peanuts in the shell.
Finally, there are the drinks. Hot drinks such as chocolate or atole, a thick, grain-based sweetened drink, are popular. If the deceased person imbibed, you may leave a glass or bottle of his favorite alcohol on the altar. Don’t forget a glass of water for your altar because the dead may be thirsty after traveling home!
7. Papel picado
Papel picado is a form of cut-out decorative paper. These are traditionally made of colored tissue paper, but you can also find plastic versions with more durability. The designs for papel picado are endless but often feature a calavera or La Catrina. These can be hung around the edge of the levels you’ve created with the covered tables and boxes. They can also be hung behind the altar.
8. Pictures of the deceased
No altar is complete without a picture of those who have passed. Pictures are usually framed and displayed on a prominent part of the altar. This is a great opportunity to walk down memory lane in honor of the deceased. It’s always fun to rifle through old photo albums and uncover forgotten memories! You might even choose to swap out picture frames to match the look and feel of your altar or weave photos in between cempesúchil garlands.
9. Salt
What is a table seasoning doing on an altar for the dead? Salt is believed to be a purifying element in many cultures, and Mexican culture is no exception. Leave it in a small dish, or get cheeky with it and let your altar be a temporary resting space for the house salt shaker. Salt gives spirits an extra layer of protection on the journey back, protecting them from any negative energy they may encounter.
10. Tapete de arena
Looking to go above and beyond for your altar? Look no further than the tapete de arena, which translates literally to “sand rug” or “sand mat.” These large, sandy images are especially popular in Oaxaca and depict everything from La Catrina to the Virgin Mary. Given the nature of sand, they fit in nicely at the foot of altars or at grave sites, where the floor is an ideal canvas. Line them with cempesúchil to give them a bright orange border! The video above shows a sand art piece made in Guatemala.
Where are Day of the Dead altar items typically found?
Many objects for Day of the Dead ofrendas, meaning offerings, can be found at home: tables, fabrics, candles, photographs, salt, and water. If you’re religious, you can include items associated with your faith that you already have.
With the exception of bread, food for the altar inevitably gets prepared at home, and the other items like papel picado or calaveras can be purchased. If you’re around for the Day of the Dead holidays in Mexico, you can buy everything you need at the mercado or tianguis, the outdoor or semi-enclosed markets.
Items such as La Catrina or calacas can be purchased at tiendas de artesanías (handicraft stores) as well. Although you’ll surely find flowers at the market, plenty of street vendors also sell Day of the Dead flowers at this time of year.
If you live in a major city in the United States, you may be able to find many of these items at Mexican markets or specialty stores. There are also online businesses specializing in Mexican or Day of the Dead items. Nowadays, some material can even be found in major department stores. Art and history museum stores are known to carry some interesting items as well!
The flowers, of course, can be bought at a florist, but if you want specific flowers, you might have better luck at a Mexican market. While it’s nice to have Day of the Dead flowers, any flower will do, so perhaps you’ll find some at your local farmers market.
Similar religious and cultural practices that honor the dead
Of course Mexico is not the only culture to practice rituals that honor the dead. Countries that practice Buddhism and Hinduism also have specific traditions related to death, some of which show similarities with those of Mexico.
- Buddhism: In Japanese Buddhism, the deceased are remembered with a tradition called obon, a series of summer festivals that occur in cemeteries and, like the Mexican tradition, include the cleaning of gravesites.
- Hinduism: A year after a loved one’s parting, a memorial service involving chanting and prayer is held, usually at home. During the 16 day period of Pitru Paksha, Hindus, like Mexicans, remember their ancestors with offerings of food.
Make the most of every celebration
Día de los Muertos is one of Mexico’s biggest holidays, and there’s no better way to celebrate loved ones who have passed than with an altar to welcome them back home for a short stay. Go big with the list above or choose the items that are most meaningful to you.
If you’re interested in uncovering more Mexican traditions, learning Spanish will help you understand this beautiful, complex culture that carries on centuries-old traditions. With Rosetta Stone, you can expand your cultural knowledge as you grow your Spanish skills in a fun, immersive environment. With bite-sized lessons, TruAccent, and more, you’ll be conversation-ready in no time.
Written by Rowena Galavitz
Rowena Galavitz is a Spanish translator, bilingual copy editor, and language and literature instructor with three master’s degrees who loves Spanish and all things Mexico.
0 Commentaires