This photo was taken at the Centennial Zoo in 1912. The zoo opened its doors in 1912 so this picture was taken only 2 years after the zoo has opened to the public. The Parque Zoologico Centenario was decreed as a protected natural area on January 31, 1963 by the state council. It was inaugurated in 1910 to celebrate the first centennial independence in Mexico. I think the person who took this photo was maybe someone that was trying to keep track/ record of the opening of the zoo, and maybe as publicity to bring advertise the zoo to others.
This picture caught my attention because it reminded me of the monkey we saw on our excursion. Another thing I remember learning about after visiting the zoo is that it was owned by a Belgian company which completed shifted my view. The signs around the choice story tour/trail had monkey on them dressed in traditional mayan clothing. It seemed like a mockery/explotation of mayan people and culture for profit. The way they were depicting mayan culture and rituals was seemed like it was through a Eurocentric view and the way they were performing for us showed that it was practiced/scripted and clearly inauthentic. The people that were performing weren’t able to depict their own culture through their own lens, but through the company’s lens. To tie this back to the original photo, I feel like the exploitation of these monkeys in the zoo was reminded of me of how this European company is exploiting mayan culture for their own profit.
