This paper discusses some of the results of ethnographic research conducted in two indigenous Toba communities in the province of Chaco, Argentina between 2005 and 2008. The research consisted of showing these communities photographs that this hegemonic society attributes as its own, which were taken in the late Nineteenth century and the Twentieth century. The objective was to analyze Toba interpretations of images of the body (in general) and the face (in particular) that appear in the pictures. To do so, we held several visual reading experiences with the intention of understanding the role of the image in constructing and transmitting ethnic memories and identities. The key question was to determine how a photographic portrait shapes feelings of identity while evoking a dimension that goes beyond a mere mimetic representation of the body.