Aztec mythology; Indian mythology -- Mexico; Mexico -- Religion
Codex Vaticanus B.—In this MS. Xolotl is represented as having a dog’s
head and again appears in the garb and ornaments of Quetzalcoatl. In
Codex Borgia his ears have a rim of yellow, evidently intended to
represent dead flesh, while in Codex Vaticanus the canine character is
indicated by the cropped ears. In the nostrils is a blue plug, the
ornament of the deceased warrior, denoting that this is the dog which
accompanies his master to Mictlampa, Place of the Dead, and assists him
to swim the river which encircles it. This distinguishing plug is seen
in Codex Vaticanus, but not in Codex Borgia. The rest of the god’s
attire is exclusively that worn by Quetzalcoatl, as described in the
space devoted to that god.
Aubin Tonalamatl.—In this MS. he again takes on a canine appearance and
is clothed in many respects like Quetzalcoatl. This frequent similarity
in dress between the gods may have its origin in the diverse meaning of
the word coatl, which, besides meaning “snake,” also denotes “comrade”
or “twin.” This dog-like creature is usually portrayed as of a dark
colour, black, with the distinctive cropped ear, while in Codex Borgia
he is depicted with jaguar-claws. Xolotl has the face-painting of
Quetzalcoatl in the Mexican MSS. proper, that is in the middle front it
is yellow and black at the sides. He wears the two-coloured white and
brown (jaguar-skin) head-loop with rounded-off ends, which latter form
is also continued in the loin-cloth. Both these articles of dress he
has in common with Quetzalcoatl.
Codex Telleriano-Remensis.—Here he is depicted with Tlazolteotl’s
spindles in his hair and an ichcaxochitl of unspun cotton, as well as
the head-loop previously described. Only in this MS. is he so adorned.
The instrument of self-mortification, the bone dagger, juts out from
above his forehead, whence issues a trickle of blood, sometimes
delineated symbolically as a feather-ball string completed with a
flower, and at others represented as real blood. He grasps an obsidian
knife, which implement also projects from his mouth along with a
flower, while a copal bag is portrayed in front of him. In some MSS.,
as in Codex Telleriano-Remensis and Vaticanus A, he is represented as
wearing a mask on his girdle.
WALL-PAINTINGS
Xolotl seems to be represented on one of the wall-paintings at Mitla,
where he is characterized by the physiognomy of an animal with
projecting upper teeth. He wears Quetzalcoatl’s conical cap of
jaguar-skin and his necklace of snail-shells. The dog’s ears seem in
this place to be merged into tufts of feathers.
POTTERY FIGURES
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