Papantla - Voladores

However Papantla's fame rests chiefly on the "voladores", whose flying act is traditionally performed here on major holidays (in particular during the eight day Feast of Corpus Christi). The origins of the ceremony can be traced back to a ritual drama based on the mythological story of the new maize, pre-Hispanic interpretations of which survive in hieroglyphic form. A musician sits playing on a small platform at the top of a tall mast, from which four "flyers" ("tocotines"), secured by a rope to a revolving frame at the masthead, glide earthwards head first. As they circle the pole the ropes progressively unwind until they reach the ground. Although associated principally with the Totonacs, the tradition survives among the Huastecs and Otomís as well. The Chorti in Honduras and the Quiché in Guatemala also perform similar flying acts.