On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Italy, the National Museum of Musical Instruments, belonging to the Pantheon and Castel Sant'Angelo Institute - Directorate of the National Museums of the city of Rome, presents, together with the Embassy of Mexico in Italy and the Hermes Music A.C. Foundation, the exhibition Wixarika Sacred Art. Music and mystical traditions in Wixarika Art, curated by Roxana Drexel and Sonia Martone with photographs by Regina Alcocer.

The exhibition, open to the public from October 25, 2024, to January 25, 2025, is dedicated to an exceptional collection of musical instruments created by the Wixárika community of Jalisco, displayed in dialogue with the museum's instruments. These extraordinary artifacts, created under the inspiration of Huichol art, belong to the collection of the Hermes Music Foundation and fully represent the traditions and mysticism of the Wixárika culture.

The Wixáritari are an indigenous group that mainly lives in the mountainous regions of Jalisco, Nayarit, and Zacatecas, in Mexico. They have preserved their traditions and worldview, based on a deep relationship with nature and its sacredness, evident in rituals, pilgrimages, and artistic expressions.

Each musical instrument reflects unique aspects of Wixárika culture and thought, and behind each instrument, in addition to the hands of its creator, there are people, stories, rituals, prayers, waiting to be told.