History and Meaning of The Latte Stone of Guahan and da Northern Marianas.... Wer and why we came up with Latte Stone Productions.... Hope you Njoy..... THE Latte of Freedom was officially introduced to the people of Guam on Tuesday. The dream of Governor Ricardo Bordallo has finally been realized. Though it is not of the same size and scope as originally envisioned by the late governor, it is still very much an impressive structure nonetheless. The best view of the Marianas Island’s newest and largest Latte can be found when driving route 1 from Asan north toward Hagatna. Congratulations to all those individuals (starting with Governor Bordallo) and groups that never gave up, and continued to move forward in constructing an edifice that has now become arguably the core representation of the Chamorro spirit. So what is a latte stone? Robert Rogers in “Destiny’s Landfall” speculates that “the latte type of construction” was “an expression of increased social complexity in the Chamorro culture.” “These stone pillars became the foundations of dwellings for high-ranking families and for large communal buildings such as men’s houses and canoe sheds.” Chamorros called these buildings “big houses.” Members of the Legazpi expedition in 1565 observed, “their houses are high, well kept and well made…atop large stone pillars, upon which they lay the flooring and have a living room with bedrooms and quarters on each side of the living room. They have other low houses on the ground where they cook and roast food.” Friar Juan Pobre in 1602, after visiting Guam as well as the Philippines, Mexico and Japan stated, “These are the best natives’ houses I have ever seen because they are built on stone pillars, which others do not have.” Aside from having the fastest seafaring vessels (flying proas), it appears that Guam also had the best houses in this neck of the woods! What does the latte stone mean to me? That was the question that was posed in class to my youngest daughter, who attends elementary school at St. Francis in Yona. She wrote in her paper: “To me the latte stone means that the Chamorros are wise, helpful and strong. They were wise because they knew that the limestone was strong enough to hold up their houses so they decided to use it as a foundation. They were helpful because, imagine carving a hard stone with a small hammer that they made. It had to take many days with the small tool to carve the stone. The ancient Chamorros must have had to take turns in helping one another, one latte stone after another. The Chamorros had to be very, very strong also. They did not have big trucks to move the latte stones. They had to carve and move and pick up some very heavy latte stones. I’ll bet they had some big muscles. Because of the way the ancient Chamorros built the latte stones, it shows us that we are wise, helpful and strong.” So as we reflect on the history of the latte stone and ponder the many questions of whom, why, how, when and where, maybe it is best to go along with the interpretation given by our most young and innocent. There is a truth to the saying, “out of mouth of the babes comes wisdom.” We are wise. We are helpful. We are strong. We are Chamorro.
Posted on: Wed, 11 Sep 2013 22:50:43 +0000
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