San Juan Cotzal is an Ixil speaking town located in department of Quiche “at the end of torturous mountain roads”. It specializes in the cultivation of the maguey plant, the fibers of which are used for making rope. Along with Nebaj and Chajul, it forms the Ixil Triangle, incorporating those who speak the Ixil dialect. The Ixil Triangle was one of the most severely effected regions of Guatemala during the civil war. Its market days are on Wednesdays and Saturdays and its fiesta day in June 24th for San Juan Bautista. “The huipil of San Juan Cotzal is usually of three-web construction and all three webs are brocaded, more on the central panel than on the sides. . . The color combination is particularly striking – blue and green often with red on a white ground.” (Altman and West, Threads of Identity, p. 109.)