Amate ( from ) is a form of bark
paper that has been manufactured in
Mexico since the
pre-Hispanic times. Amate paper was extensively produced and used for both communication, records and ritual during the
Aztec Empire; however, after the
Spanish conquest, its production was mostly banned and replaced by European paper. Amate paper production never completely died, nor did the rituals associated with it. It remained strongest in the rugged mostly inaccessible mountain areas of northern
Puebla and northern
Veracruz states, with the small village of San Pablito in Puebla noted its shamans' production of paper with "magical" properties. This ritual paper use drew the attention of foreign academics in the mid-20th century, which alerted the
Otomi people of the area of the commercial possibility of the paper. They began to sell it in cities such as
Mexico City, where the paper was adopted by
Nahua painters from
Guerrero to create "new" indigenous craft, which was then promoted by the Mexican government.