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307:, after she and her brothers had decapitated Coatlicue. The Coyolxauhqui stone was discovered at the base of the Templo Mayor in 1978. Like the images of Coatlicue and Yolotlicue (whose hands are cut off) in the statues and fragments, Coyolxauhqui is also decapitated and dismembered. Some scholars have related the dismemberment of the Tzitzimime to the dismemberment of Coyolxauhqui. If what is generally referred to as Coatlicue is actually one of the Tzitzimime, then Huitzilopochtli could have saved the human race by decapitating and dismembering them. Cecelia Klein argues that the Tzitzimime also have a positive role in Aztec myth, and that they are decapitated as a result of sacrificing themselves to put the sun in motion. These debates over the interpretation of the Coatlicue statue continue today.
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292:("heart-her-skirt"), was discovered in 1933. Though badly damaged, it is identical to Coatlicue except for having a skirt of hearts instead of snakes. As with the Coatlicue Statue, the bottom of Yolotlicue depicts Tlaltecuhtli and the year 12 Reed is inscribed between its shoulder blades. Two or more fragments of a similar statue or statues also exist, suggesting that these were part of a larger set. Reading the statues as part of a larger set, Elizabeth Boone has argued that the statues and fragments commonly identified as Coatlicues are actually
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about destroying religious objects and books, which the
Spanish regarded as Satanic. The Coatlicue statue no doubt occupied a prominent position in Tenochtitlan. It is uncertain why it survived destruction and why it remains incredibly well-preserved, because fragments of similar statues are evidence of widespread destruction of such cult objects. Possibly, upon being ordered to destroy the work, the Mexica people instead buried it below the water table.
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Because of the carvings on the bottom of the statue, Léon y Gama believed the statue had originally been displayed at an angle, raised from the ground and supported by columns. He was incorrect, as the sculpture would have stood on its base. Aztec sculptures are generally carved in the round, despite
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The densely carved, colossal statue stands 8 feet tall and pitches forward, towering over its viewer and giving the impression that it is advancing forward. The front and back of the statue are bilaterally symmetrical. The annotated drawing below deciphers some of the statue's dense symbolism:
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in 1521 entailed house-to-house fighting between the
Spanish, their indigenous allies, and the Aztecs, resulting in the destruction of much of the city. The Spanish invaders ordered the systematic destruction of what was left, including Mexica statues and buildings. They were particularly vehement
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In 1790, the statue had been moved to the
National Autonomous University of Mexico to be preserved and studied, but it was soon buried on the orders of the clergy, because its presence resulted in worship, and they did not want to encourage adherence to Aztec religion, which the Spanish had spent
169:("earth-lord"), despite the fact that the base would always be hidden from view. Similar statues and statuary fragments were discovered in the 20th century, leading scholars to debate the meaning of these works and their significance within the culture and ceremonies of the
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The statue was possibly completed in 1439 or 1491, although these dates are contested. Like many Aztec statues, it is carved in the round. Notably, it is also carved on its base with an image of the deity
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338:. Fragments of other Coatlicue Statues show that the Coatlicue Statue in the National Museum of Anthropology is one of a larger set. In this image you can see part of a skirt of braided serpents.
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depicts the Aztec deity
Coyolxauhqui who was the daughter of Coatlicue. In the usual telling of the myth, she was defeated and dismembered by her brother, the patron deity of the Aztecs,
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This drawing of the Aztec
Coatlicue Statue by Antonio de Léon y Gama shows the work from all sides. The annotations help decipher some of the statue's dense symbolism.
201:, initiated a new phase of research on the Templo Mayor as contemporary scholars attempted to interpret their dense symbolism and decipher their meanings.
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Umberger, Emily; Hernández Faham, Casandra (Spring 2017). "Matlatzinco Before the Aztecs: José García Payón and the
Sculptural Corpus of Calixtlahuaca".
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197:(also known as the "calendar stone") was found about 100 feet away. The momentous discovery of these two statues, along with the 1791 excavation of the
216:, who identified the god depicted as "Teoyaomiqui", the deity of death and sacred war. The statue was identified as Coatlicue by Mexican archaeologist
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in front of the
National Palace on 13 August 1790 during the excavation of a water canal. A few months later, on 17 December 1790, the
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artist. Although there are many debates about what or who the statue represents, it is usually identified as the
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exhibition. The statue remained on the patio at the university until the first
National Museum was established.
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Klein, Cecelia (April 2008). "A New
Interpretation of the Aztec Statue Called Coatlicue, "Snakes-Her-Skirt"".
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of it, after which it was reburied. It was again dug up for the final time in 1823, so that
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centuries attempting to destroy. To prevent this, the statue was buried in the patio of the
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is one of the most famous surviving Aztec sculptures. It is a 2.52 metre (8.3 ft) tall
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Incarnations of the Aztec
Supernatural: The Image of Huitzilopochtli in Mexico and Europe
523:"Is Day of the Dead More Indigenous or Catholic? Friars Durán and Sahagún vs. Knowledge"
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324:. The statue is identical to the Coatlicue Statue except for the skirt of hearts.
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Curiosity and the Aesthetics of Travel Writing, 1770–1840: From an Antique Land
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The Aztec Templo Mayor: A Symposium at Dumbarton Oaks, 8th and 9th October 1983
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where it could not be seen. The statue was disinterred in 1803, so that
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The first known scholar to study the statue after its excavation was
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Boone, Elizabeth Hill (1987). "Templo Mayor Research, 1521–1978".
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could make another cast, which was displayed the next year in the
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Boone, Elizabeth (1999). "THE "COATLICUES" AT THE TEMPLO MAYOR".
352:. In this fragment you can see part of a shell-tipped back panel.
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639:. Philadelphia: The American Philosophical Society. p. 47.
614:"The Mysteries of the Monolithic Aztec Goddess called Coatlicue"
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Bullock's cast of "Teoyamiqui", on display in London in 1824.
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The New Journal of the Philosophical Research Association
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The Coatlicue statue was excavated in the main plaza of
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586:. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 278, 313.
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Descripción histórica y cronológica de las dos piedras
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the fact that all sides would not be visible at once.
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149:("Snakes-Her-Skirt"). It is currently located in the
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544:. México: Impr. de Don F. de Zúñiga y Ontiveros.
500:. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
370:. Its discovery led to the excavation of the
157:. Originally displayed in the Mexica city of
664:. London: Thames & Hudson. p. 149.
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177:Burial, excavation and early interpretations
284:Comparable statues and contemporary debates
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368:Mexico City
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191:Mexico City
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686:Categories
662:The Aztecs
383:References
294:Tzitzimime
290:Yolotlicue
251:Piccadilly
92:Discovered
527:Glasstire
195:sun stone
147:Coatlicue
46:Coatlicue
32:Cōātlīcue
135:andesite
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563:: 14.
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255:London
145:deity
139:Mexica
79:2.52 m
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143:Aztec
122:Aztec
666:ISBN
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