Maya Blue Mexican Abalone | Capo
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We recently got the opportunity to buy some special blue abalone shell from Mexico. The rippling of this Mexican Abalone is just stunning.
A design note on our use of the color "Maya Blue." When we came across this light blue shell made from Mexican Abalone I just knew we had to call it Maya Blue. In 17th Century Europe, when Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio and Peter Paul Rubens painted their famous masterworks, ultramarine blue pigment made from the semi-precious lapis lazuli stone was mined far away in Afghanistan and cost more than its weight in gold. Only the most illustrious painters were allowed to use the costly material, while lesser artists were forced to use duller colors that faded under the sun. It wasn’t until the industrial revolution in the 19th Century that a synthetic alternative was invented, and true ultramarine blue finally became widely available.
Across the Atlantic Ocean, in Mexico, colonial Baroque works created by artists like José Juárez, Baltasar de Echave Ibia and Cristóbal de Villalpando in early 17th Century Mexico – New Spain – were full of this beautiful blue. How could this be? Lapis lazuli was even rarer in the New World. It wasn’t until the middle of the 20th Century that archaeologists discovered the Maya had invented a resilient and brilliant blue, centuries before their land was colonized and their resources exploited. You can read more on this amazing color that the Mayan's invented and its history here.
Every Thalia Capo comes with two universal radius fretpads:
- 1 standard tension for all acoustic and electric guitars
- 1 high tension for 12-string and folk instruments
· Every guitar is made with a different radius. Visit our Fretboard Radius Guide for additional pads, made specifically for your guitar!
