UC Riverside UC Riverside Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title City of the Sun: Early Postclassic (900-1150C.E.) Chichen Itza and the Legacy of Solar Ideology in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/26s1f1xz Author Coltman, Jeremy D Publication Date 2021 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE City of the Sun: Early Postclassic Chichen Itza (900-1150 C.E.) and the Legacy of Solar Ideology in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico A Dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology by Jeremy Coltman March 2021 Dissertation Committee: Dr. Karl A. Taube, Chairperson Dr. Travis W. Stanton Dr. Kenichiro Tsukamoto Copyright by Jeremy Coltman 2021 The Dissertation of Jeremy Coltman is approved: Committee Chairperson University of California, Riverside Acknowledgments This dissertation is a product of my passion (some would justifiably claim obsession) for Mesoamerican art, architecture, writing, and religion. I must first extend a heartfelt thank you to my committee, especially my adviser and mentor, Karl Taube, who not only trained me in iconography but has been a major inspiration and a good friend. I am proud to call myself his student. Travis Stanton was in many ways a second adviser and I heartily thank him for his guidance and collaboration, which I hope will continue for years to come. I was happy to be in this department when Kenichiro Tsukamoto was hired and elated when he joined my committee. Juliet McMullin has been a wonderful chair for our department, and I thank her for all her work, especially during the COVID-19 campus shut down when we all went remote. She has now taken on a new position as interim Dean of CHASS and I wish her the best in this new position. When I matriculated to UCR in the Fall of 2015, my cohort and I had the opportunity to take the last graduate seminars taught by department legends Wendy Ashmore and Thomas Patterson. This was an unforgettable experience. Since then, I have also seen the hiring of many new faculty and the beginning of a welcomed transformation to our department. I must thank my first mentors who were so instrumental in my formative years. As an undergraduate, Frances Berdan, introduced me to Aztec ethnohistory, glyphs in the Florentine Codex, and the experience of recreating Aztec “super glue” out of orchids in her laboratory for ancient material analysis. A couple years later, James Brady, founder of the subdiscipline of Maya cave archaeology, took me to the “dark side” by introducing me to iv caves, an experience that changed the way I looked at Mesoamerican landscape and provided a fieldwork experience I will never forget. John Pohl has been a colleague and good friend that I have now been collaborating with for over a decade and I look forward to our continuing collaboration. Regarding my research at Chichen Itza, I must thank UC Mexus and The Center for Ideas and Society for multiple grants that made research at Chichen Itza possible. I would also like to thank the Center for Ideas and Society for the collaborative conference grant that contributed to bringing the major conference When East Meets West: Chichen Itza, Tula, and the Early Postclassic Mesoamerican World to UC Riverside in November 2019. I would like thank Guillermo de Anda, Director of the Proyecto Gran Aquifero Maya, and project members Karla Ortega and James Brady. Working with this team provided me special access to Balankanche Cave, the top of the Osario pyramid, Cueva Manitas, and the Joya de Thompson. The work of José Francisco Osorio León, Francisco Pérez Ruíz, María Rocio González de la Mata, especially involving the Intitial Series Group at Chichen Itza is indispensable. I thank them for the tour and access to the Initital Series Group. I would also like to thank the Proyecto de Interaccion Politica del Centro de Yucatan, Chichen Itza, directed by Dr. Travis Stanton and Dr. Traci Ardren, which provided me the INAH permit to conduct research throughout the entire site which gave me access to locations closed off to the general public. At the INAH office at Chichen Itza, I would like to thank Marco, Filiberto, Octavio, and Noah for being accommodating during my many visits to the site. I owe a special thanks to Dominique Meyer from the Center of Interdisciplinary Science for Art, Architecture and Archaeology at UC San Diego. v Dominique and I walked the complete site of Chichen Itza, and I watched in awe as he controlled that drone with an expertise far beyond my comprehension. At UC Riverside, I thank the office staff who work so hard to keep everything running smoothly. I especially thank Anna Wire who will be enjoying her well-deserved retirement. I would like to thank Ryohei Takatsuchi for being a great help with logistics for the UCR Chichen Itza conference and for being a good friend in the process. Other students at UC Riverside provided a warm and collegial environment, especially Nasim Eslami, Sophea Seng, Kelsey Sullivan, Nelda Marengo Camacho, Stephanie Lozano, Leslie Perkins, Franka Rissmann, Elizabeth Beckner, Stephen James, Thelma Patnett, and Jonathan Extract. Many colleagues in this field have been supportive over the years. I would especially like to thank Nancy Gonlin, Keith Jordan, Cecelia Klein, Cynthia KristanGraham, Jesper Nielsen, Guilhem Olivier, David Stuart, and Vera Tiesler. I owe a special debt of gratitude to the late Michael D. Coe, who was always generous and kind to me. An early supporter of my work, he was one of my letter writers in applying to graduate school, and I will always remember him fondly. I would also like to thank a number of other colleagues who have been instrumental to my career in various ways including Geoffrey Braswell, Claudia Brittenham, David Carrasco, Ximena Chavez Balderas, Oswaldo Chinchilla, Alan Cobb, Ángel González López, Annabeth Headrick, Christophe Helmke, Stephen Houston, Zachary Hruby, Jeff Kowalski, Alfredo López Austin, Elliot Lopez-Finn, Leonardo López Lujan, Simon Martin, Michael Mathiowetz, Mary Miller, Virginia Miller, Linda Palitt, William Ringle, vi Dominique Rissolo, Astrid Runnglier, Mat Saunders, Ann Scott, Joel Skidmore, Nawa Sugiyama, Saburo Sugiyama, Alexandre Tokovinine, Andrew Turner, Gerard van Bussel, and Marc Zender. I thank my grandfather, Frederick C. Wolfe, a remarkable man no longer with us. He fostered my deep interests in the ancient cultures of the Americas from a young age with trips to the American Southwest, Mexico, and Guatemala. Last, but under no circumstances the least, I thank my family: Logan, Bekah, Chloe, Salem, Becky, Amber, Debbie, Megan, and Scotty. I especially thank my mother, Kymberly, the most remarkable person I know, and a constant source of inspiration and encouragement. This dissertation is for her. vii ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION City of the Sun: Early Postclassic Chichen Itza (900-1150 C.E.) and the Legacy of Solar Ideology in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico by Jeremy Coltman Doctor of Philosophy, Graduate Program in Anthropology University of California, Riverside, March 2021 Dr. Karl A. Taube, Chairperson The Early Postclassic (900-1150 C.E.) metropolis of Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico, arose from the ashes of the Classic Maya collapse and ushered in a new era that synthesized the old and new with the local and foreign. One of the many unique things about Chichen Itza was an ideology that centered around a single event—the ascent of the dawning sun on the road of the plumed serpent out of the eastern sea. This daily event was at the center of an ideology based upon solar worship. Despite the perplexing little amount of solar imagery from Classic and epi-Classic Central Mexico, it is likely that the origins of the solar cult can be found among the earlier Classic Maya with it reaching a level of state ideology at Chichen Itza. Solar ideology was taken to new heights at Chichen Itza where there are more concentrated representations of the sun god than anywhere in all Mesoamerica. In this dissertation, I will look at the cultural and material dynamics of solar ideology at Chichen Itza in order to gain a more nuanced understanding of cultural exchange, art, and religion during the Early Postclassic Period. The sun god, plumed serpent, and souls of heroic warriors were closely associated with heart sacrifice and blood that sustained them on their viii daily journey to the eastern solar paradise, a place of shimmering brilliance and beauty characterized by a rain of flowers, jewels, and flames. Chichen Itza likely represented this symbolic paradise on earth and may have even been recognized as such by their contemporaries in western Mesoamerica. The solar ideology reflected at Chichen Itza made the site a virtual “City of the Sun” where conceptions of the dawning sun, plumed serpent, heart sacrifice, and paradise blended effortlessly together. This solar ideology spread into Central Mexico by way of the ideological relationship shared between Chichen Itza and contemporaneous Tula, a legacy that can be seen centuries later in the Late Postclassic International Style, including the Aztec and Mixteca-Puebla substyles. ix Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................... 1 When East Meets West .................................................................................................... 2 Previous Research .......................................................................................................... 6 Chichen Itza and the Postclassic International Style ................................................... 12 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 16 Significance of Dissertation .......................................................................................... 27 Chapter 2: Sacred Geography and Cosmology ................................................................. 30 Cenotes, Rain Gods, and Mythic Seas .......................................................................... 30 The Rain Cult ................................................................................................................ 36 Cosmic World Pillars.................................................................................................... 41 Wind Gods ..................................................................................................................... 42 God N, the Old Man ...................................................................................................... 44 The Maize God Emergence Theme ............................................................................... 50 The Atlantean Bearer in Late Postclassic Central Mexico ........................................... 53 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 56 Chapter 3: The Sun God and Solar Symbolism of Chichen Itza ...................................... 59 The Sun God and Solar Symbolism of Chichen Itza ..................................................... 62 Kingship, Impersonation and Apotheosis ..................................................................... 73 Solar Symbolism at Early Postclassic Tula .................................................................. 79 Solar Symbolism in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico ............................. 82 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 90 Chapter 4: A Wind from the West: Enter K’uk’ulkan ...................................................... 92 A Plumed Being of Wind and Breath ............................................................................ 93 Representations of K’uk’ulkan/Quetzalcoatl at Chichen Itza....................................... 98 Plumed Serpent as Balustrades .................................................................................. 101 The Plumed Serpent and Venus .................................................................................. 103 Summoned by the Sun ................................................................................................. 106 The Path of the Sun ..................................................................................................... 108 The Plumed Path of the Heroic Warrior..................................................................... 111 The Plumed Serpent in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico ...................... 113 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 117 x Chapter 5: Agents of the Sun: The Itza Warrior ............................................................. 119 The Butterfly Chest Pectoral ....................................................................................... 121 The Tezcacuitlapilli..................................................................................................... 123 The Reclining and Flying Warrior .............................................................................. 128 The Tzompantli............................................................................................................ 133 Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli.................................................................................................. 136 The Early Postclassic War Serpent and Apotheosis of the Warrior Soul ................... 140 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 144 Chapter 6: Feeding the Sun: Heart Sacrifice at Chichen Itza ......................................... 146 Heart Sacrifice in Ancient Mesoamerica .................................................................... 146 The Early Postclassic Origins of the Cuauhxicalli ..................................................... 150 The Chak Mool and Centrality ................................................................................... 157 The Sun as Devourer of Blood .................................................................................... 163 Sacrifice on the Gold Disks from the Sacred Cenote.................................................. 166 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 169 Chapter 7: Chichen Itza as Paradise................................................................................ 172 Flower Mountain at Chichen Itza ............................................................................... 174 Flowers in Material Culture ....................................................................................... 176 The Sun as Solar Flower ............................................................................................. 180 The Matter of Paradise ............................................................................................... 183 Wealth, Beauty, and Abundance in the Initial Series Group ...................................... 186 Flowers, Song, and Dance at Chichen Itza and Cotzumalhuapa ............................... 190 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 197 Chapter 8: Conclusion..................................................................................................... 199 xi List of Figures Figure 1.1. LiDAR map of Chichen Itza Figure 1.2. Map depicting distance between Tula and Chichen Itza Figure 2.1. The Sacred Cenote of Sacrifice Figure 2.2. Cenote Xtoloc Figure 2.3. Tlaloc incensarios, Balankanche Figure 2.4a. Profile view of Tlaloc incensario, Balankanche Figure 2.4b. Stela 2, Cozumel Figure 2.4c. Tlaloc incensarios, Balamkú Cave Figure 2.5. Stone Tlaloc heads Figure 2.6a. Watery landscape, Lower Temple of Jaguars Figure 2.6b. Figures in avian headdresses grasping on to waterlily plants, Uxmal Figure 2.6c. Waterscape depicting God N, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 2.7a. Avian wind being supporting individual, Palenque. Figure 2.7b. Avian Atlantean bearer, Osario Pyramid Figure 2.7c. Avian wind being, Northwest colonnade Figure 2.8a. Ik’ K’uh, Uxmal Stela 14 Figure 2.8b. Ik’ K’uh throne bearers, Dos Pilas Figure 2.8c. Nine Wind sustaining the watery sky, Codex Vindobonensis Figure 2.8d. Ehecatl as sky bearer, Codex Borgia Figure 2.8e. Ehecatl as Atlantean bearer, Tenochtitlan Figure 2.9a. God N as spider Figure 2.9b. Aged God N, Sepulturas bench, Copan Figure 2.9c. Two aged Itzam sustaining throne Figure 2.9d. Two Itzam bearers lifting lintel, Laxtunich Figure 2.10. God N, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 2.11a. Four Atlantean God N figures, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 2.11b. Four Goddess O figures, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 2.12a. God N, northwest colonnade, Jamb A Figure 2.12b. Bearded God N Atlantean, south jamb of entrance, Temple of the Warriors Figure 2.13. Female and male Atlantean bearers, Temple of the Big Tables Figure 2.14a. Atlanteans, Initial Series Group Figure 2.14b. Atlanteans, Temple of the Snails, Initial Series Group Figure 2.15. Atlantean figures supporting throne, Temple of the Warriors Figure 2.16a. Maize god resurrection plate Figure 2.16b. Maize god emerging from cleft in turtle carapace Figure 2.16c. Maize god holding tropical bird emerging from cleft in turtle earth Figure 2.16d. Ukit K’an Leek Tok’, capstone, Ek’ Balam Figure 2.17a. Maize god emergence, Bonampak Stela 1 Figure 2.17b. Maize god in mountain, Tikal Figure 2.17c. Maize god emergence scenes, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 2.17d. Detail of Maize god emergence, Lower Temple of the Jaguars xii Figure 2.18a. Diving Maize god, Tulum Figure 2.18b. Maize god, Tancah Figure 2.18c. Maize god, Cueva Manitas Figure 3.1a. Solar motif on tri-pod vessel, Teotihuacan Figure 3.1b. Solar disk from Teotihuacan style vase Figure 3.1c. Nevada de Toluca Stela with solar disk Figure 3.2a. Sculptured head of Kinich Ajaw, Palenque Figure 3.2b. The Sun god of Chichen Itza, mural, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.3. Wooden lintel depicting solar deity, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.4a. Sun god, mural from Temple of the Chac Mool Figure 3.4b. Late Postclassic Tonatiuh, Codex Borgia Figure 3.5. Ukit K’an Leek Tok’, Ek Balam Stela 1 Figure 3.6a-b. Young sun god, Ceibal Figure 3.7a. Breath element, Pabellon ceramic, Ceibal. Figure 3.7b. Breath element, Ek’ Balam, Stela 1 Figure 3.7c-d. Serpent and floral breath element, wooden lintel Figure 3.8a-b. Pabellon ceramic vase Figure 3.9. Solar deity in rhomboid disk, Late Classic Ñuiñe mural Figure 3.10a. Sun god on jaguar throne, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.10b. Sun god, Temple of the Wall Panels Figure 3.10c. Sun god of Chichen Itza, Hacienda Figure 3.10d. Sun god, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.11a. Sun god, Structure N5-21, Dos Pilas Figure 3.11b. Solar disk, fragmented stela 4, Yaxchilan. Figure 3.11c. Figure in solar disk, Yaxchilan Stela 3 Figure 3.11d. Armed Solar deity in disk Figure 3.12a. Solar disk, Stela 1 from Tikal Figure 3.12b. Solar disk, Stela 10 from Piedras Negras Figure 3.12c. Solar disk, House A, Palenque Figure 3.12d. Solar disk with k’in and yax markings Figure 3.13a. Sun God in solar disk, murals from Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.13b. Solar disk, fragment of Stela 4, Yaxchilan. Figure 3.13c. Sun god in solar disk, Palenque Figure 3.14a. Step-fret solar breath serpent of sun god, North Temple of Ballcourt Figure 3.14b. Sun God, Quirigua Stela D, E4 Figure 3.14c. Nun Yax Ayiin, Tikal Stela 31 Figure 3.14d. Sun god as part of headdress, House A, Pier D, Palenque Figure 3.14e. Sun god, Hieroglyphic Stairway 3, Yaxchilan Figure 3.14f. Fret-nosed serpent emerging from floral earspool, Yaxchilan Lintel 24 Figure 3.14g. Fret-nosed serpent emerging from flower Figure 3.14h. Fret-nosed serpent emerging from flower, Temple of the Cross, Palenque Figure 3.15a. Glyph for Xiuhcoatl, upper register of pillar from Temple of the Warriors Figure 3.15b. Wooden depiction of Xiuhcoatl, Cenote of Sacrifice xiii Figure 3.15c. Xiuhcoatl, turquoise tezcacuitlapilli Figure 3.15d. Step-fret serpent from solar disk, mural, Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Figure 3.15e. Aztec Xiuhcoatl, Tanayuca. Figure 3.15f. Xiuhcoatl, Codex Aubin 20. Figure 3.15g. Xiuhcoatl as name glyph with spiked fret breath element, Codex Azcatitlan Figure 3.15h. Xiuhcoatl with spiked fret breath element, Codex Cotcotzin Figure 3.16. Temple of the Warriors, aerial view from drone Figure 3.17. Descending Sun Gods, Upper registers, Temple of the Warriors Figure 3.18a-c.Tonatiuh, Codex Borgia, Codex Vaticanus B, and Codex Cospi Figure 3.19a. Uhuk Chapaht Tz’ikiin K’inich Ajaw Figure 3.19b. K’inich Yax K’uk’ Mo’, Structure 10L-16, Copan Figure 3.19c. Ruler impersonating sun god, Stela A, Copan Figure 3.19d. Ruler impersonating sun god, Laxtunich panel Figure 3.20a. Bird Jaguar IV, Stela 9, Yaxchilan Figure 3.20b. Ruler impersonating sun god, vicinity of Palenque Figure 3.21a. Sun God on jaguar throne, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.21b. Sun god on jaguar throne, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.21c. Sun god on jaguar throne inside solar disk, wooden lintel Figure 3.21d. Red jaguar throne with tezcacuitlapilli on back, Castillo-sub Figure 3.21e. ‘One Death’, sitting on jaguar throne placed upon mat, Codex Nuttall Figure 3.21f. ‘One Death’, sitting on jaguar throne, Codex Nuttall Figure 3.22a. Sun god, Ixtapantongo, Estado de Mexico Figure 3.22b. Tonatiuh in solar disk, Codex Borgia Figure 3.22c. Maya sun god and plumed serpent pair, detail of vase, Tula museum Figure 3.23a. Toltec style Fine Orange vase, Bilimek Collection, Vienna Figure 3.23b. Detail of probable sun god from vase in Bilimek collection, Vienna Figure 3.23c. Sun god, North Wall of Great ballcourt Figure 3.24a. Solar disk fragment, Tula Figure 3.24b. Solar rays from sun disk, mural, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 3.24c. Solar rays from capstone, Initial Series Group. Figure.3.24d. Solar disk from mural at Las Higueras, Veracruz Figure 3.24e. Solar ray, incesnsario fragment, Tancah Figure 3.24f. Solar rays, Aztec Calendar stone Figure 3.25a. Solar disk, Codex Paris p. 21 Figure 3.25b. Sun god with fret-nosed breath element, Late Postclassic Codex Dresden Figure 3.25c. Mayapan Stela 5 Figure Fig.3.25d. Descending sun god, mural, Late Postclassic Mayapan Figure 3.26. Late Postclassic Maya sun god, gilded copper disk, Sacred cenote Figure 3.27a. Maya sun god, Copper disk, Sacred Cenote Figure 3.27b. Severed head of bearded Maya sun god, mural from Santa Rita, Corozal Figure 3.27c. Bearded and fanged sun god, Mayapan Figure 3.27d. Tonatiuh, Codex Fejervery-Mayer, p. 33 Figure 3.28a. Sun disk, murals, Santa Rita Corozal, Belize Figure 3.28b. Plumed serpent passing through disk, mural, Santa Rita, Corozal xiv Figure 3.28c. Sun rising up through sound of drum., mural from Santa Rita, Belize Figure 3.29a. Solar disk, Aztec ceramic drum, LACMA Figure 3.29b. Two flying figures with arms through solar disks Figure 3.30a. Solar disk, Humboldt plaque Figure 3.30b. Tonatiuh, Humboldt disk Figure 3.30c. Tonatiuh in solar disk, back of Aztec Stuttgart Statuette Figure 3.30d. Flying Tonatiuh in solar disk Figure 4.1a. The Castillo, Chichen Itza Figure 4.1b. Breath of plumed serpent balustrade, Castillo. Figure 4.2a. Plumed serpent, Teotihuacan tri-pod vase Figure 4.2b. Intertwined plumed serpents, Tikal Figure 4.2c. Plumed serpent carrying Tlaloc in mouth, Teotihuacan Figure 4.2d. Plumed serpent carrying Chahk impersonator in mouth, Uxmal Figure 4.3a. Classic Maya bearded dragon Figure 4.3b. Bearded plumed serpent, Cacaxtla Figure 4.3c. Plumed serpent, House of the Governor, Uxmal Figure 4.3d. Plumed serpent, detail of wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.3e. Quetzal crested and bearded serpent, Toltec Figure 4.4a. Floral tail with quetzal plumes, Xochicalco Figure 4.4b. Yellow floral tail with quetzal plume breath, Cacaxtla Figure 4.4c. Yellow floral tail from plumed serpent, Cacaxtla Figure 4.4d. Plumed serpent rattle tails, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.4e. Plumed serpent rattle tail, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.5a. Seated ruler with quetzal breath volute, Late Classic Xultun murals. Figure 4.5b. Plumed serpent, Xochicalco Figure 4.5c. K’awiil as quetzal, façade of Osario pyramid, Chichen Itza Figure 4.5d. Feather as breath element, Mulchic Figure 4.5e. Quetzal plume denoting breath or speech, Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca Figure 4.6a. Plumed serpent figure wearing gold mask, Lower Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.6b. Gold mask found in Sacred Cenote Figure 4.6c. Plumed serpents on top of gold mask Figure 4.6d. Plumed Serpent figure wearing gold mask, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.6e. Atlantean figure wearing Tlaloc rain mask Figure 4.7a. Shell serpent goggles Figure 4.7b. Mother of pearl serpent goggles Figure 4.7c. Shell serpent goggles, Teotihuacan Figure 4.8a. Serpent balustrades, EVII-sub pyramid at Uaxactun Figure 4.8b. Plumed serpent as breath and groundline, San Bartolo murals, North wall Figure.4.8c Plumed serpents emerging as breath of the mountain, Holmul Figure 4.9a. Plumed serpent heads on balustrade, Teotihuacan Figure 4.9b. Plumed serpent ascending stairway, frescoes, Cacaxtla House A Figure 4.9c. Plumed serpent as ascending balustrade to Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.10a. Venus platform, between Castillo and the Sacred Cenote xv Figure 4.10b. Plumed serpent with fish, Venus platform Figure 4.10c. Plumed serpents and fish, altar, Tzompantli Figure 4.11a. Plumed serpent with Lamat signs, X Orange vessel Figure 4.11b. Plumed serpent with star signs along body, Mercado Figure 4.11c. Plumed serpent with Ek’ signs, Venus platform, Osario group Figure 4.11d. Plumed serpent figure with star signs, Ixtapantongo rock painting Figure 4.12a. Sun god facing plumed serpent figure, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.12b. Sun god using plumed serpent as vehicle, jade plaque, Sacred Cenote Figure 4.12c. Sun god using plumed serpent as vehicle, North Temple of Geat Ballcourt Figure 4.12d Sun god in solar flower, flanked by two plumed serpents Figure 4.13a. Intertwined serpents carrying tezcacuitllapilli exterior decoration of the Lower and Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.13b. Plumed serpent carrying solar mirror, corner piece, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.13c. Plumed serpent carrying solar mirror, Structure 2D1, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 4.14a. Intertwined serpents carrying floral disk, section of façade, Castillo-sub Figure 4.14b. Intertwined plumed serpents carrying solar flower, Structure 4, Late Classic El Tajin Figure 4.14c. Intertwined plumed serpents carrying a solar flower, murals from Late Postclassic Tulum Figure 4.15a-b. Warriors paired with plumed serpents standing over tezcacuitlapilli Figure 4.16a. Reclining or flying figure using plumed serpent as vehicle, Gold disk H, Sacred Cenote Figure 4.16b. Warrior emerging from maw of cloud serpent Figure 4.16c. Reclining Toltec Warrior using plumed serpent as vehicle, El Corral, Tula Figure 4.16d. Toltec avian warrior with plumed serpent Figure 4.16e. Quetzalcoatl with large plumed serpent standing on woven mat, rock carving, Cerro de la Malinche Figure 4.17a. Late Postclassic serpent head, Mayapan Figure 4.17b. Late Postclassic serpent head, Mayapan Figure 4.17c. Quetzal crested plumed serpent, Late Postclassic graffiti, Chichen Itza Figure 4.17d. Quetzal crested plumed serpent, Codex Madrid p. 18 Figure 4.17e. Head of Serpent balustrade, Late Postclassic San Angel, Quinata Roo Figure 4.17f. Serpent balustrade head, Late Postclassic Viste Alegre, Quintana Roo Figure 4.17g. Plumed serpent, X Fine Orange vase, Late Postclassic Chac Mool, Quintana Roo Figure 4.17h Late Postclassic serpent, Codex Laud p. 23. Figure 4.18a. Quetzalcoatl, Codex Borbonicus Figure 4.18b. Plumed serpent carrying the Sun, back of Aztec Stuttgart Statuette Figure 4.18c. Plumed serpent rising out of pool with Venus or star signs along body, Late Postclassic spearthrower Figure 4.19a. Late Postclassic Aztec imitation X Fine Orange vessel, Templo Mayor Figure 4.19b. Conch symbols on upper rim of imitation X Fine Orange vessel xvi Figure 4.19c. Detail of plumed serpent, imitation X Fine Orange vessel Figure 4.19d. Plumed serpent, Xochicalco Figure 4.20. Plumed Serpent, Sixteenth-Century Palencia Cross. Figure 5.1a. Warriors on four sided pier, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 5.1b. Warrior wearing large tezcacuitlapilli, Temple of the South Ballcourt Figure 5.1c. Butterfly chest pectoral worn by Atlantean warrior columns, Tula Figure 5.1d. Warrior wearing butterfly element in headdress Figure 5.1e. Toltec warrior wearing butterfly chest pectoral, Tula Figure 5.2a. Mixcoatl wearing butterfly chest pectoral, Templo Mayor Figure 5.2b. Xiuhtecuhtli wearing turquoise chest pectoral and xiuhtotol bird in headdress, Codex Borbonicus Figure 5.2c. Female warrior wearing turquoise chest pectoral, incensario, Kislak Collection Figure 5.2d. Goddess on back of Bilimek Pulque vessel wearing butterfly chest pectoral Figure 5.2e. Warrior wearing butterfly chest pectoral and tezcacuitlapilli, murals, Malinalco Figure 5.3a. Tezcacuitllapilli, fragment of sculpture, Initial Series Group. Figure 5.3b. Warrior wearing floral tezcacuitlapilli, El Castillo. Figure 5.4a. Late Classic solar mirror, Stela 10 Piedras Negras Figure 5.4b. Tezcacuitlapilli, Caracol Stela 5 Figure 5.4c. Solar mirror back rack, Stela 22, Tikal Figure 5.4d. Solar back mirror with skeletal centipede heads, Stela 5, Tikal Figure 5.4e. Solar back mirror, Yaxchilan Stela 11 Figure 5.5a. Petaled solar mirror with k’in sign in center, Takalik Abaj Stela 4 Figure 5.5b. Solar mirror with k’in sign in center, Tikal Stela 1 Figure 5.5c. Scalloped or petaled rim of tezcacuitlapilli, Temple of the Chac Mool Figure 5.5d. Solar back mirror on back of Atlantean, Tula Figure 5.5e. Tezcacuitlapilli solar mirror, Late Postclassic Mixtec, Codex Becker Figure 5.5f. Tezcacuitlapilli solar mirror, Late Postclassic Mixtec, Codex Nuttall Figure 5.6a. Tezcacuitlapilli found on top of the Jaguar throne, Castillo-sub Figure 5.6b. Solar disk with four radiating Xiuhcocoa, murals, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 5.6c. Tezcacuitlapilli, Temple of the Chacmool Figure 5.6d. Tezcacuitlapilli from Tula Figure 5.7a. Recling warrior, Pabellon vessel Figure 5.7b. Reclining warriors in Toltec regalia, Pabellon vessel Figure 5.7c. Reclining warriors, Pabellon vessel Figure 5.7d. Reclining warrior , Altar de Sacrificios Figure 5.7e. Reclining figure, Pabelleon vase, Ciebal Figure 5.8a. Warrior in reclining/flying position, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 5.8b. Flying warrior, Las Monjas Figure 5.8c. Jade bead depicting flying warrior, Sacred Cenote Figure 5.8d. Jade bead depicting flying warrior, Sacred Cenote xvii Figure 5.9a. Flying Toltec warrior, Palacio Quemado, Tula Figure 5.9b. Semi-reclining and flying Toltec warrior, oyohualli pendant Figure 5.9c. Flying warrior, Late Postclassic teponaztli drum Figure 5.9d. Flying warrior using plumed serpent as vehicle, detail of spearthrower Figure 5.10. Reclining figure holding torch, Platform of Eagles and Jaguars Figure 5.11a-b. Chak Mool, Castillo-sub Figure 5.11c. Chak Mool, Temple of the Chac Mool Figure 5.11d. Chak Mool, Tula Figure 5.12a. Leafy forest arbor, Late Classic Maya vase Figure 5.12b. The Cementario Platform, Terminal Classic Uxmal Figure 5.12c. Stone altar, Terminal Classic Nohpat Figure 5.13a. Skull and cross bones platform, Tenochtitlan Figure 5.13b. Skeletal figure standing on skull and cross bone platform, Codex Magliabechiano 88r Figure 5.14a-b. The Tzompantli at Chichen Itza Figure 5.15a. Partially skeletal warrior holding severed head, Tzompantli Figure 5.15b. Partially skeletal warrior with snakes and flames emanating from body, Tzompantli Figure 5.15c. Partially skeletal warrior with skeletal legs and dart points on bottom of feet, Tzompantli Figure 5.15d. Partially skeletal warrior with snakes and flames emanating from body, Tzompantli Figure 5.16a-c. Skeletal Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli holding severed head, mural in Temple of the Warriors Figure 5.17a. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli standing on tzompantli, Codex Borgia Figure 5.17b. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli standing on tzompantli, Codex Borgia Figure 5.18a. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli wearing star skirt, Temple of the Warriors Figure 5.18b. Descending insect warrior soul, Mitla murals Figure 5.18c. Descending 1 Motion and 1 Death, Codex Selden p. 1 Figure 5.18d. Insect warrior soul, Mitla murals Figure 5.19a. Mask with large butterfly ornament over face, Teotihuacan. Figure 5.19b. Tiquisate censer, Teotihuacan Figure 5.19c. War Serpent with central figure wearing Teotihuacan nose ornament, Temple of the Warriors Figure 5.19d. War serpent wearing Teotihuacan nose ornament, Venus platform Figure 5.19e. War Serpent wearing butterfly nose ornament, Tula Figure 5.19f. Xiuhcoatl with warrior soul in maw, detail of Aztec Calendar Stone Figure 6.1a. Disembodied deity head consuming insides of prone sacrificial victim, Late Classic Maya vase Figure 6.1b. Sacrificial victim on stone altar in front of stela Figure 6.1c. Effigy censer depicting ruler holding heart Figure 6.2a. Tlaloc symbol with teeth and blood emerging from fanged mouth, Teotihuacan Figure 6.2b. Warrior wearing Tlaloc mask, Cacaxtla xviii Figure. 6.2c Tlaloc with bloody heart, Teotihuacan Figure 6.2c. Tlaloc face surrounded by 18 skulls, Copan Figure 6.3 Tri-pod vessel with warrior holding heart with knife, Teotihuacan. Figure 6.4a. Eagles with tri-lobed blood motif, Tula Figure 6.4b. Eagle clutching heart, Chichen Itza Figure 6.4c. Eagle devouring blood, Codex Porfirio Diaz Figure 6.4d. Eagle devouring heart and blood, Codex Cospi Figure 6.5. Sun god and plumed serpent pair with cuauhxicalli between them, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 6.6a. Cuauhxicalli full of hearts and sun god, detail of wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 6.6b. Cuauhxicalli full of hearts and sun god, detail of wooden lintel, Upper Temple of Jaguars Figure 6.6c. Offering bowl full of hearts and sun god, Codex Dresden Figure 6.7a. Cuauhxicalli vessel, Berlin. Figure 6.7b. Detail of hearts on cuauhxicalli rim Figure 6.7c. Cuauhxicalli with eagle plumes and hearts Figure 6.7d. Cuauahxicalli with eagle plumes, hearts, and blood Figure 6.7e. Eagle plumed cuauhxicalli, Codex Borgia p. 42 Figure 6.8a. Cuauxicalli, interior of vessel depicting Olin sign, Vienna. Figure 6.8b. Tlaltecuhtli, cuauhxicalli vessel, Vienna. Figure 6.9a. Cuauhxicalli with darts, northwest colonnade Figure 6.9b. Cuauhxicalli with darts, Initial Series Group Figure 6.9c. Cuauhxicalli with darts piercing hearts, Tula Figure 6.9d. Cuauhxicalli with darts, Tula Figure 6.9e. Cuahxicalli with darts piercing bloody hearts, Codex Borgia Figure 6.9f. Cuauhxicalli with darts piercing bloody hearts, Codex Borgia Figure 6.9g. Cuauhxicalli with dart, Teocalli of Sacred Warfare Figure 6.10a. Warriors emerging from plumed serpents towards cuauhxicalli, Northwest colonnade, Chichen Itza Figure 6.10b. Warriors emerging from serpents facing cuauhxicalli Northwest colonnade Figure 6.10c. Cuauhxicalli with darts, Northwest colonnade Figure 6.11a. Warrior emerging from plumed serpent towards cuauhxicalli. Northeast colonnade Figure 6.11b. Plumed serpent carrying solar disks, Northeast colonnade Figure 6.12a. Sun god extending spearthrower towards cuauhxicalli of hearts, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 6.12b. Tonatiuh, Codex Borgia Figure 6.13a. Sun god, Temple of the Warriors Figure 6.13b. Heart sacrifice scene, gold disk from Sacred Cenote Figure 6.13c. Bejeweled quetzal bird feeding from yellow blossom, Initial Series Group Figure 6.13d. Descending bird drinking stream of liquid from floral vessel, Codex Borgia Figure 6.13e. Descending bird consuming contents from vessel, Codex Porfirio Diaz xix Figure 6.14a. Plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxicalli between them, Temple of the Wall panels Figure 6.14b. Plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxcialli and sacrificial stone Figure 6.15. Plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxicalli, Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Figure 6.16a. Bloody heart in front of plumed serpent, Teotihuacan Figure 6.16b. Blood symbol in front of plumed serpent, Teotihuacan Figure.6.17a. Warriors with plumed serpents flanking cuauhxicalli, Northwest colonnade Figure 6.17b. Warriors with plumed serpents flanking cuauhxicalli, Initial Series Group Figure 6.18a. Scene of hear sacrifice with plumed serpent present, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 6.18b. Scene of heart sacrifice, mural from Temple of the Warriors Figure 6.19a. Flying reclining warriors flanking cuauhxicalli, Palacio Quemado, Tula Figure 6.19b. Reconstruction of Palacio Quemado Figure 6.20a. Chak Mool Figure 6.20b. Chak Mool, Initial Series Group Figure 6.20c. Reclining warriors, Pabellon vase Figure 6.20d. Reclining Toltec warrior, Palacio Quemado, Tula Figure 6.21. Figures holding circular objects over abdomens Figure 6.22a. Chak Mool with flat circular surface on abdomen, Temple of the Chacmool Figure 6.22b. Chak Mool with flat circular surface on abdomen, Temple of the Warriors Figure 6.22c. Surface of the Chak Mool from the Castillo-sub Figure 6.23. The reclining Pakal, Palenque Figure 6.24. Plant sprouting from abdomen of sacrificed individual Figure 6.25. Tress sprouting from abdomen of reclining women, Chichen Itza Figure 6.26a-b. Reclining figures trees sprouting from abdomen, Tula Figure 6.26c. Skeletal goddess with world tree emerging from abdomen, Codex Borgia Figure 6.26d. Goddess with cactus and eagle symbolizing Tenochtitlan, Teocalli of Sacred Warfare Figure 6.27. Xochiquetzal with world tree emerging from solar disk on abdomen, Codex Borgia Figure 6.28a. Tlaltecuhtli monolith with hole in chest Figure 6.28b. Greenstone goddess with mirror over abdomen, Templo Mayor Figure 6.28c. Tezcatlipoca born from jade jewel on chest of Tlaltecuhtli Figure 6.28d. Skeletal goddess giving birth from jade jewel on chest, Codex Borgia Figure 6.29a. Xipe Totec sacrificed on scaffold Figure 6.29b. Tonatiuh drinking blood of sacrificed Xipe Totec Figure 6.30a. Xipe Totec sacrifice, Codex Nuttall Figure 6.30b. Xipe Totec sacrifice, Codex Becker Figure 6.31a. Blood pouring from solar disk, Codex Fejervary-Mayer Figure 6.31b. Blood emerging from solar disk with dart piercing heart, Codex Borgia Figure 6.31c. Blood emerging from solar disk with dart piercing heart, Codex Cospi Figure 6.32a. Tonatiuh drinking stream of blood from sacrificed Xipe Totec, detail of bone rasp xx Figure 6.32b. Tonatiuh receiving blood, Late Postclassic carved bone Figure 6.32c-d. Sacrificial hearts held up towards sun, Mapa de Cuauhtinchan Figure 6.33. One Death, in solar disk with large torrent of blood extending from disk to platform, Codex Vindobonensis Figure 6.34. Scene of heart sacrifice, gold disk from Sacred Cenote Figure 6.35. Flying warrior and scene of sacrifice, gold disk from Sacred Cenote Figure 6.36. Reclining flying warrior and probable scene of sacrifice, gold disk, Sacred Cenote Figure 7.1a. Blowgunner hunting quetzal birds, fragment Teotihuacan vase Figure. 7.2a. Witz, from Osario platform Figure 7.2b. Witz wearing floral headband Figure 7.2c. Flower Mountain, Temple of the Warriors Figure. 7.2d. Witz, Temple Xtoloc Figure. 7.3a. Flower Mountain and War Serpent, Temple of the Warriors Figure 7.3b. Warrior with Flower Mountain on upper register and War Serpent on lower register, Northeast Colonnade. Figure 7.3c. Feathered serpent and war serpent, Teotihuacan Figure 7.4a. Pottery jar fragment, Initial Series group Figure 7.4b. Tripod bowl, 3/4 complete Figure. 7.4c Carved fine orange bowl, Temple of Initial Series Figure 7.5. Jade ornaments in floral form, Chichen Itza Figure 7.6a. Flower with quetzal plum breath, Initial Series Group Figure 7.6b. Yellow flower with quetzal plume breath, Late Classic vase Figure 7.6c. Quetzal plumes emerging from flower, Late Classic vase Figure. 7.7. Flowering trees with birds, Castillo Viejo Figure. 7.8a. Flowering tree with birds and butterflies, South temple Figure 7.8b. Flowering tree with birds and butterflies Figure 7.9a. Yellow flower, Initial Series Group Figure 7.9b. Bejeweled quetzal and yellow flower, Initial Series Group Figure 7.9c. Descending quetzal and yellow flower, Initial Series Group Figure 7.10a. Floral design on wall, Las Monjas Figure 7.10b. Floral textile pattern, Las Monjas Figure 7.10c. Plumed serpent with floral textile background, Uxmal Figure 7.10d. Avian sun god and floral textile pattern, monument from Queretaro Figure 7.11a. Solar flower with breath emanations, Las Monjas Figure 7.11b. Flower with breath emanations, House E, Palenque Figure 7.11c. Flowers and K’in signs with bifurcated breath elements, Late Classic bowl, Guatemala Figure 7.11d. Flower with bifurcated breath elements, Aztec Chalco box Figure 7.12a. Large solar disk as aromatic flower, mural, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 7.12b. Flower from East wall, Palenque Figure 7.12c. Solar disk with breath elements, mural, Upper Temple of the Jaguars Figure 7.12d. Flowers from House E, Palenque Figure 7.13a. Floral k’in sign, Codex Dresden xxi Figure 7.13b. Sun god appearing in disk, Codex Dresden Figure 7.14a. Descending sun god, Temple of the Warriors Figure 7.14b. Dancing jaguar, Initial Series Group Figure 7.14c. Warrior in solar paradise, Temple of the Warriors Figure 7.14d. Woman with offering of jade earspool pair in solar paradise, Court of the Thousand Columns Figure 7.15a. Warrior standing atop Flower Mountain. Figure 7.15b. Reclining warrior or priest holding torch in solar paradise, Temple of the Warriors Figure 7.16. Sky band with jewels and other precious elements in compositional space, cover of sarcophagus, Temple of the Inscriptions, Palenque Figure 7.17a. Ruler scattering k’uh, Yaxchilan Figure 7.17b. K’uh flowing from hands of ruler, detail of Yaxchilan Stela 1 Figure 7.17c. Starry Deer Crocodile in sea of k’uh Figure 7.17d .Akan in sea of k’uh Figure 7.17e. Pair of Ik’ k’uh sitting among elements denoting k’uh Figure 7.18. Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl as Toltec warriors in paradise, Templo Mayor vases. Figure 7.19a. Avian wind god dancing among articles of wealth and preciousness, Initial Series Group Figure 7.19b. Items of wealth, beauty, and music, Codex Duran Figure 7.20a. Tree of wealth and beauty, Temple of the Owls Figure 7.20b. Crocodile world tree, stone fragment, Osario group Figure 7.21a. Bust of probable sun god, base of pillar, Temple of the Owls Figure 7.21b. Bust of probable sun god from pillar at Temple of the Owls Figure 7.22a. Bust of probable sun god from pillar at Temple of the Owls Figure 7.22b. Sun God, Stela 13, Machaquila Figure 7.22c. Terminal Classic Maya sun god, Uxmal Figure 7.22d. Sun god sculpture, Uxmal Figure 7.23a. Sun god as base of cosmic tree, Early Classic Maya vase from Merchants Barrio, Teotihuacan Figure 7.23b. Vase depicting paradise with sun as world tree, Oxkintok, Yucatan Figure 7.23c. Plumed serpent carrying sun upon world tree, Late Postclassic turquoise mosaic Figure 7.23d. Mixtec sun god, One Death, as world tee, Codex Colombino Figure 7.24. Personified cacao tree, Late Classic Maya vase Figure 7.2.5 Capstone depicting K’awiil, Initial Series Group Figure 7.26a. Sun god, Bilbao Monument 3 Figure 7.26b. Sun god, El Castillo Monument 1, Cotzumalhuapa Figure 7.26c. Probable sun god, Bilbao Monument 7 Figure 7.26d. Fragment depicting sun god in disk Figure 7.27a. Bilbao Stela 21 Figure 7.27b. Jade plaque in Cotzumalhuapa style, Sacred Cenote Figure 7.28a. Celestial deity with drum, Monument 4, Bilbao, Cotzumalhuapa xxii Figure 7.28b. Celestial deity with drum, Monument 6, Bilbao, Cotzumalhuapa Figure 7.29a. Avian wind god holding drum, Initial Series Group Figure 7.29b. Ceramic drum depicting head of avain wind god Figure 7.29c. Wooden teponaztli depicting face of Ehecatl Figure 7.30a. Flying figure on Pabellon ceramic Figure 7.30b. Xochipilli in flying position Figure 7.30c. Warrior in flying position, plaque from Templo Mayor Figure 7.30d. Quetzalcoatl in flying position, Codex Borgia p. 37-38 Figure 7.30e. Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl in flying position, Late Postclassic flat stamp, Texcoco Figure 7.30f. Ixtlilton in flying position, detail of teponaztli drum Figure 7.30g. Tonatiuh in flying position Figure 7.31a. Hummingbirds sucking nectar from flowers, Malinalco murals Figure 7.31b. Sixteenth Century gold Palencia Cross depicting Flower World xxiii Chapter 1: Introduction This dissertation is about solar ideology at the Early Postclassic (900-1150 C.E.) site of Chichen Itza in northern Yucatan, Mexico (Fig.1.1). While much of this dissertation will discuss the new sun god of Chichen Itza, a predecessor to the Late Postclassic Tonatiuh, as the focal point of solar ideology (Taube 1994), it will also consider an entire suite of beliefs and ideas that form an ideology based around the sun. One theme, and perhaps the most important of them all, begins with a single daily event—the ascent of the dawning sun out of the “fiery pool” that is the eastern Caribbean Sea. Rather than remaining static in his heavenly abode, the sun god must make a daily journey, working for the people as it were, to provide warmth and life. Everything else involving solar ideology revolves around this single daily event. For instance, the plumed serpent as the eastern embodiment of wind and breath and bringer of rain, served as the daily vehicle for the dawning sun and the souls of heroic warriors who accompanied the sun on his journey. Aside from both being eastern beings that make this journey together, they are also bound by the most precious of offerings in the consumption of sacrificial hearts and blood. Like the later Aztec, there is a solar charter at Chichen Itza for these offerings to ensure the sun rises daily, bright and resplendent, offering warmth and life. Cross-culturally, the sun has been an incredibly powerful symbol associated with religion, power, and political authority for millenia (Singh 1993). In ancient Egypt, the 18th Dynasty pharaoh Akhenaten founded a new cult and religion based around the aten ‘sun’ 1 and Egyptian kings frequently used the sun in their names to legitimize power and political authority, much like ancient Maya kings did in the expression K’inich Ajaw (Colas 2003). In 15th century France, King Louis XIV identified himself as the Roi Soleil ‘Sun King’. The ideology centered around the sun at Chichen Itza was profound and the site itself was likely conceived as a type of Versailles serving as the earthly paradisiacal abode of the new and vibrant sun. According to the later Aztec, deceased warriors slain in battle or in gladiatorial combat went to the ichan tonatiuh ilhuicac, ‘House of the Sun’ where they turned into birds and butterflies feeding off the nectar of flowers (Sahagún 1950-82: VI: 162). Like Chichen Itza, the Aztec conception of the eastern solar paradise was inhabited by the sun god who was sustained by the blood and hearts of the sacrificed. To put it simply, paradise was a place of sacrifice as well as beauty. Chichen Itza was a cultural intermediator between the Classic Maya and Late Postclassic Central Mexico with its unique brand of solar ideology entering Central Mexico by way of contemporaneous Tula, which is due almost directly west (Fig.1.2). The legacy of this ideology is best reflected in the Late Postclassic International Style of Mesoamerica, which includes the Aztec and Mixteca-Puebla art styles. When East Meets West The unique societies making up ancient Mesoamerica were never in isolation from one another but were in sustained contact over millennia. Central to this study is the relationships that existed between highland Mexico and the Maya to the east, a relationship that goes back to at least the Early Classic and probably much earlier. The arrival of Siyah K’ak at Tikal in 378 C.E., ushered in an appropriation of Teotihuacan war related 2 symbolism that would become commonplace among Maya elites (Stone 1989; Stuart 2000). This was a conscious effort on the part of Maya kings to don foreign attire as symbols of elite militaristic power. Despite the Maya appropriation of Teotihuacan warrelated symbolism and talud-tablero architecture, the Maya did not seem to have adopted the Teotihuacano model of governance, at least not visually. Unlike the kings of the Classic Maya, the image of the ruler at Teotihuacan, much like in later Aztec society, was minimized. Instead of commemorating kings and their deeds, the image of the warrior was strongly emphasized. There does not seem to be a specific aspect to who these warriors were. They were likely a general symbol of military might and prestige, a central element of a new social contract allowing for social mobility where members of society who served the state by fighting for it were then able to move up the social ladder by gaining wealth and prestige (Stanton et al. n.d.). The Classic Maya would continue to highlight their kings as the focal point of governance. During the Classic Maya Collapse, or Terminal Classic period in the 9th century, local political systems were disrupted. While sites such as Ceibal and Uxmal were still employing a visual hierarchy based upon Classic Maya kings, the visual culture surrounding those kings began integrating Central Mexican conventions and practices. The full transition seems to have taken place during the founding of Sotuta period Chichen Itza, during the thick of the Maya collapse (Stanton et al. n.d.). 1 Aside from a depersonalization 1 The Puuc region is a good example of the adoption of Central Mexican practices prior to Sotuta period Chichen. These include Teotihuacan body inspired treatments including cremations (Graña-Behrens and Tiesler 2017). 3 of rulers, there also seems to have been a marked shift in the practice of human sacrifice where the narrative shifted from the ruler and his captive to more of an institutional version that legitimizes states (Demarest 1984). Such a change can be marked between the Classic Maya and Late Postclassic Central Mexico. While the Classic period focused on individual leadership and personal power, the Late Postclassic Aztec for instance, elevated the role of sacrifice to one where the leadership was conscious in the ideological weapon they wielded and the major role it played in state policy (ibid; 237). This model for the Aztec might be applied to earlier Chichen Itza where both sites share some of the more direct visual representations of depersonalized human sacrifice (Jordan n.d.). Chichen Itza remains one of the more complex sites to research, not for lack of data necessarily, but because of not considering the multi-cultural nature of the site. The site represents a very conscious reimagining of the Mesoamerican world during the Early Postclassic where east truly meets west. One cannot understand this site through a Maya lens only, nor could they through a Central Mexican lens. It is the hybrid nature of this site that makes it truly unique. As previously mentioned, such a meeting of east and west occurred centuries before with the major central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan not only having a major presence and historical legacy in the Peten and Copan, but the Maya actually living and creating art at Teotihuacan (Stuart 2000; Sugiyama et al. 2020; Taube 2003c). The Teotihuacanos viewed the Maya as the people of the east, and for the people of ancient Mesoamerica, the eastern direction was held in highest esteem. This was the direction from where the quetzal plumed serpent embodiments of wind and breath carried the rain, and from where the sun was born daily out of the “fiery pool”, the eastern 4 Caribbean Sea (Houston 2010a: 73). In a number of studies ( Houston and Taube 2011; Miller 1982; Taube 2010b), the eastern shores of the Caribbean with important Late Postclassic sites such as Tulum, Santa Rita Corozal, and those on the Island of Cozumel have been viewed as the symbolic realm of the dawning sun in ancient Maya thought. In fact, to the people of western Mesoamerica, the whole Yucatan peninsula may have been viewed as this symbolic eastern realm. While not a coastal site, the eastern location of Chichen Itza would have been geographically and symbolically significant to other people due directly west at sites like El Cerrito and Tula in Central Mexico. The east was also significant because for the rest of Mesoamerica extending from ancient Teotihuacan to the contact period Aztec, this direction was not only the geographic locale of the Maya, but was also where the summer rains came. Furthermore, the eastern lands of the Maya was viewed as the economic and symbolic region of precious objects held in high esteem such as jade, cacao, and quetzal plumes (Taube 1994). In oral traditions from the later Aztec, the Man God Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl left Tollan and journeyed east to Tlapallan ‘City of the Sun’ which may have been Chichen Itza (Sahagún 1950-1982, Introductory Volume: 69-70). In later Aztec thought, the east was significant as the ichan tonatiuh ilhuicac, ‘House of the Sun’, where the souls of slain warriors transformed into birds and butterflies and sipped nectar from flowers in a paradisiacal realm of beauty (Sahagún 1950-82: VI: 162). Chichen Itza may have been conceived as a “City of the Sun” from where the dawning sun made his daily ascent. The plumed serpent, a quetzal covered manifestation of wind and breath brought the rains from the east and served as the path or road of the dawning sun making the east all the more 5 significant for people in western Mesoamerica. This dissertation will note the surprisingly little amount of sun god and solar imagery in Classic and Late Classic Central Mexico prior to the Early Postclassic dominance of Chichen Itza where Tula served as the logical point of dissemination for the solar ideology of Chichen Itza into Late Postclassic Central Mexican ideology and religion. Given the symbolic and geographic importance of the east, this will be a reoccurring theme throughout this dissertation. Previous Research Early Postclassic (900-1150 C.E.) Chichen Itza was one of the first sites to be systematically researched by Maya archaeologists (Morley 1913, 1925; Morris et al. 1931; Ruppert 1935, 1952) and has continued to have sustained research over the past century (Braswell and May 2012; Cobos 2003, 2004, 2015, 2016; González de la Mata et al. 2006, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014; Osorio León 2004, 2006; Schmidt 2011; Volta and Braswell 2014; Volta et al. 2018) with many of the interpretations of the material and visual data remaining contentious, especially regarding chronology (Chung 2009; Lincoln 1986; Osorio León 2004, 2006; Osorio León and Pérez de Heredia 2001; Pérez de Heredia 2010, 2012; Ringle 2017). A number of studies have been specifically devoted to the art and architecture of the site (Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010; Bolles 1977; Brittenham 2019; Coltman 2019; Miller 2007; Morris et al. 1931; Ringle 2009; Schmidt 2003, 2011; Seler 1990-1996: V: ; Taube 1994, 2020; Taube et al. 2020; Tozzer 1957) with other studies focusing on the hieroglyphic texts and non-Maya writing found at the site (Beyer 1937; Boot 2005; Grube et al. 2003; Grube and Krochock 2011; Kelley 1968; Love and Schmidt, n.d ; Proskouriakoff 1970). 6 Aside from the many debates regarding chronology, another point of contention is interregional interaction and cultural exchange, particularly with the Central Mexican Toltec site of Tula, Hidalgo, which is almost directly due west (Fig. 1.2). Because of striking similarities in art and architecture, Chichen Itza has been linked to this Central Mexican site since the late nineteenth century (Charnay 1885, 1887). The term “Toltec” when referring to these shared traits can be attributed to Desire Charnay (1885, 1887) who first noted the striking similarities in bas relief sculpture and architecture. In some ways, the term “Toltec” has taken on a life of its own and refers to multiple cultures with everything from descendants of Teotihuacan to the ancestors of the Quiche and other highland Maya (Carmack 1968; Coggins 1987: 442; 2002). At Chichen Itza itself, Toltec has referred to the Mexican invaders and conquerors of Chichen Itza (Houston and Coe 2015: 215), and an art style that was introduced by the invading Toltec armies (Tozzer 1930, 1957). Throughout this dissertation, I will only refer to the inhabitants of Tula as Toltec and certain military regalia shared between the warriors of Tula and Chichen Itza will be referred to as Chichen-Toltec Style, which constitutes part of the Postclassic International Style which was more inclusive and went beyond just these two sites. Since the late nineteenth century, scholars have been embroiled in a “who was on first?” debate that has come to characterize the discussion of these two major cities. The issue of Toltec influence on Chichen Itza has been an unavoidable topic with many early studies assuming a Toltec invasion of Chichen Itza (Tozzer 1930, 1957). While Charnay characterized the Toltec as the omnipresent fountainhead of all Mesoamerican civilizations, this was not without its critics. Daniel Brinton (1887) was critical of such an 7 assertion but Charnay’s writings were more popular whereas Brinton’s works were primarily read by academics. Brinton noted that what was known of the Toltecs comes from written sources more than the actual archaeology. Indeed, ethnohistoric sources mention Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl and the legendary Tollan, which according to Kowalski and Kristan-Graham (2011: 7) “may or may not refer to Tula, Hidalgo”. Kowalski and Kristan-Graham (ibid.: 7-8) note the idea of a Toltec invasion of Yucatan is due to a poor reading and interpretation of early colonial sources that become entrenched in the literature and ultimately take on a life of their own. While this dissertation does not support the idea of a Toltec invasion and will not rely on the ethnohistoric sources alone, I will use them periodically as I think that in certain cases, they can still offer some interesting points worth considering. One of the more prolific scholars taking on the Toltec-Maya question this past century was Alfred Tozzer, whose major work (1957) is still useful in many ways but is nevertheless in need of revision. Tozzer saw Chichen’s architectural chronology as being divided into two periods, the first he referred to as “Chichen-Maya”, or a Pure Florescent Phase (Andrews 1965) associated with Puuc style buildings and considered to be at least partly contemporaneous with the Late Classic period in the Southern lowlands. These Chichen-Maya structures were contrasted with a “Toltec-Maya” style, also known as the Modified Florescent Style (Andrews 1965), which can be structures with one or two chambers set on pyramids with surfaces decorated with shared symbolism with Tula such as the columns carved as serpents and atlanteans, jaguars and eagles, and Chak Mool sculptures among artistic forms (Wren and Schmidt 1991: 202). While the Toltec invasion 8 and conquest theory would remain popular prior to the 1970’s, it was not without its critics (Lothrop 1952; Proskouriakoff 1950, 1951; Rands 1954). Perhaps the most critical note came in an essay by George Kubler (1961) entitled “Chichen Itza y Tula”. Kubler’s paper shifted the discussion by stating that many supposed Toltec features at the site had antecedents among the Classic Maya, a controversial stance that Coggins referred to as “the shot that was heard around the small world of Mesoamerican archaeology, resounding still” (2002: 41). There was much resistance to Kubler’s ideas, especially from Alberto Ruz Lhuillier (1962) who refuted these with other examples. While Kubler’s paper did come under fire and while not all of his assertions are correct, we must remember that cultural exchange worked both ways and perhaps the “Mayaness” of Toltec Tula has been long overlooked. We now know that the Maya had a firm presence at Teotihuacan dating before the entrada, and the Maya presence in Central Mexico during the Terminal Classic is well attested at sites such as Cacaxtla and Xochicalco. Therefore, it should not be surprising if there was a Maya presence at Tula. This dissertation will focus on the Maya influence on Late Postclassic Central Mexican iconography, the most prominent example being the solar cult, which likely came through Tula by way of Chichen Itza. In other words, Chichen Itza was the cultural intermediator between Classic Maya and Late Postclassic Central Mexican solar ideology. Many ideas in this dissertation will have built upon the giants before it, most notably in terms of cultural exchange as related to ideology, art, and religion. Eduard Seler (1990-1996: VI: 41-165) wrote a lengthy study of the art and architecture of Chichen Itza, making several notable contributions including the identification of the sun god and 9 plumed serpent figure from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. He also illustrated Toltec iconography including the butterfly chest pectoral as a major component of warrior attire at the site (Seler 1990-1996: VI: 85, fig.100-106. Seler also looked at a number of figures appearing with their arms raised up in many of the upper and lower registers of carved pillars found throughout the site. The male figure with his arms raised would come to be known as God N (see Martin 2015). Seler (1990-1996: VI: fig. 16a, 3538, 48, 53, and 55a) illustrated many examples of the Puuc style architecture found throughout the site, especially in the Las Monjas complex, some of which would later be identified as Flower Mountain, the paradisiacal floral abode of ancestors and royalty (Taube 2004a). Another major contribution came decades later in Alfred Tozzer’s two volume magnum opus, Chichen Itza and its Cenote of Sacrifice: A Contemporaneous Study of Maya and Toltec (1957). The second volume was almost completely dedicated to imagery. While not always correct in identification, Tozzer showed great acumen in grouping motifs and symbolism together making it easy for the researcher to follow and discern important visual patterns and similarities. With solar symbolism for instance, he noticed continuity in his images with Classic Maya examples of solar disks paired with examples from Chichen Itza and the Late Postclassic Paris Codex (Tozzer 1957: fig. 267-269). He also took note of similarities between the Chichen sun god with those of Late Postclassic Central Mexico (Tozzer 1957: II: figs. 275-279a, 280-284). Another major and more recent iconographic study of Chichen Itza came with the publication of Karl Taube’s important 1994 article looking at “Toltec period” Chichen Itza, 10 meaning the Early Postclassic phase that was closely associated with the contemporaneous Toltec site of Tula. While Taube looked at such themes as cosmology, maize and agriculture, and sacrifice and war, his most important contribution was in identifying the sun god of Chichen Itza as the predecessor of the Late Postclassic Central Mexican Tonatiuh (1994: 224-225). More recently, Taube (2020), has examined concepts of paradise at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza, particularly in regard to Flower Mountain and an early predecessor to the Late Postclassic duck-billed wind god, Ehecatl, who appears in relation to music and dance in the Initial Series Group (Taube 2020; Taube et al. 2020). Finally, in a major study of Aztec solar monuments, Eduardo Matos Moctezuma and Felipe Solís (2004) note that the solar symbolism of Chichen Itza, particularly the sun god sitting in his solar disk, was the logical source of solar ideology that entered into Central Mexico through Chichen Itza’s relationship with Tula. The authors suggest that this may have been done through the transport of tezcacuitlapilli, a turquoise solar mirror depicting four Xiuhcocoa ‘fire serpents’ to Tula. While one of these mirrors has recently been found in an offering at Tula, there are more known examples in the art and archaeology of Chichen Itza. This dissertation will use these previous works as the points of departure for examining the solar ideology of Chichen Itza and the sites relationship with Tula, as well as the strong and enduring legacy left in both Late Postclassic Yuctan and Central Mexico. These previous studies have highlighted the similarities between Chichen Itza and Tula, a debate which has characterized, and to some degree, perhaps overshadowed much discussion regarding these two sites. However, given the striking similarities in art and 11 architecture shared between them, it is imperative to include them in the same conversation. Frankly, that Chichen Itza and Tula shared a relationship and were in direct contact can no longer be ignored. However, while some scholars continue to hold to an invasion theory (Coe and Houston 2015: 215; Guenter 2019), for most Maya scholars, the idea that Chichen Itza ever saw a Toltec invasion is simply no longer tenable. While I see the similarities between Chichen Itza and Tula as being an alliance that had economic, ideological, and political implications (Greene Robertson and Andrews 1992; Kowalski 2011:205), the two sites were not in isolation from the rest of Mesoamerica (López Austin and López Luján 2000; Ringle 2004; Ringle et al. 1998; see also Robertson 1970). This relationship included many sites dating to the Late-Terminal and Early Postclassic including El Cerrito, Cacaxtla, Teotenango, Xochicalco, Las Higueras, El Tajín, and El Baúl among others that shared visual culture and ideology to one degree or another (Baird 1989; Carlson 1991; Ringle et al. 1998; Taube 2015). We can instead look to an Early Postclassic International Style reflected best in the art and architecture of Chichen Itza and Tula but present throughout the region. This style would be a product of cultural exchange involving the sites mentioned above, as well as profound influence from the earlier Classic Maya and Teotihuacan. Chichen Itza and the Postclassic International Style Despite Chichen Itza being a site that incorporated influence from multiple areas of Mesoamerica, it is firmly rooted in Maya culture. As Volta and Braswell (2014: 393) note, while they prefer the phrase “Early Postclassic”, they do not agree with the foreign invasion model either and believe that most people at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza were in fact 12 the descendants of those Terminal Classic Maya of the Northern lowlands. I strongly agree with Houston and Stuart (1996: 304), who note: Although the infusion of central Mexican culture into northern Yucatan in the Terminal Classic period did involve the adoption of new deities, ‘cults’ and new iconographic ideals, the essential ‘Maya-ness’ of the religion encountered in the conquest of Yucatan cannot be denied. Based on settlement patterns and architecture, Charles Lincoln (1986: 153) saw Chichen Itza as a “highly stratified and internally complex political society that was probably ethnically uniform and Maya”. Maya gods appear more frequently than those of Central Mexico and even certain artistic forms and themes such as world bearing atlanteans and Chak Mool sculptures may be Maya in origin making their way into the artistic program of Tula. While the striking similarities between Chichen Itza and Tula are thought to be imported, Kurjack and Robertson (1994: 23), note that interaction and influence do not result in monumental construction and even if these are the result of importation, “the native social mechanisms were directly instrumental in the construction itself”. Aside from these “native mechanisms”, Chichen Itza ushers in something new but most importantly sets the stage for the transition from the Early Postclassic to the Late Postclassic. Thus, Chichen Itza may be considered as …the southern root of the multiple origins that led to the formation of Postclassic Mesoamerican culture, a culture that has been called “international” (Robertson 1970) and whose last representatives were found in all their splendor by the Spanish conquerors in the Aztecs and their contemporaries in Central Mexico (Schmidt 1998: 445). The above quote by Schmidt will serve as an important theme throughout this dissertation. Chichen Itza was the cultural intermediator between the Classic Maya and 13 Late Postclassic Central Mexico and a major contributor to the more inclusive Postclassic International style. The term international style has been adopted for multiple places and time periods and designates the cross-cultural blending of artistic forms (Feldman 2006: 2; Robertson 1970; Boone and Smith 2003). While widely used regarding the artistic traditions of Postclassic Mesoamerica, the term was first used in reference to shared visual culture in the Old World: The term international style has entered art historical parlance to describe the use of shared visual forms across multiple cultural regions. Its application is rooted in visual appearance; that is, it is descriptive, and implies the presence of preexisting, autonomous (and largely monolithically conceived) “national” styles against which the “international” can be measured. (Feldman 2006: 1). Because of the striking similarities in art and architecture between Chichen Itza and Tula, which included other sites such as El Cerrito, it is appropriate to describe an Early Postclassic International Style that immediately preceded and bridged the gap between the Early and Late Postclassic by heavily influencing International artistic styles including Mixteca-Puebla, Aztec, Coastal Maya, and highland Guatemala. 2 While Feldman (2006: 8) notes that the hybrid nature of the international style creates an impasse since motifs associated with different cultures can appear together on the same piece merging in a way 2 Elizabeth Boone and Michael Smith (2003: 188-191) have introduced several new concepts to help organize the previous research regarding the International Style of Mesoamerica, including the Postclassic International Style, the Early Postclassic International symbol set, and the Late Postclassic international style. The Postclassic international style in its most elaborate form includes the Mixtec and Borgia Group codices as well as other subsets such as the Tulum and Santa Rita murals, and a Southwest Maya substyle that includes the murals from the sites of Iximche’ and Utatlan. 14 that defies any single cultural designation, it can also sometimes be quite clear where certain motifs and artistic forms in Mesoamerica come from. This can be seen in the day names being used as royal titles at Chichen Itza. A composite reading of a text from the Castillo Viejo of Chichen Itza reads “The image of the flowers of the grandfather of 12 Ak’bal, ‘Bone-nose’ Ch’ajoom Ajaw” (Schmidt et al. 2008: 3). Lajchan Ak’bal is a new lord otherwise unrecorded in hieroglyphic inscriptions. As Schmidt et al. (2008: 4) note, it is interesting that his name “Twelve Darkness” is a day in the 260-day calendar round. While day names as royal titles are not completely unusual, it is most prominent in Mixtec and Mexican manuscripts. According to Schmidt et al. (2008: 5), “it is safe to say that the Castillo Viejo texts suggest a “foreign” system of naming but using the local Maya calendar”. Another example of bar and dot naming at Chichen occurs in the Initial Series Group in the Gallery of Monkeys where a figure is named 10 Dog with the ten being written in bars and no dots. The calendar name and placement of titles that follows may suggest foreign influence but the Ch’ajoom is wholly Maya (Schmidt et al. 2008: 5). The nickname “bone-nose” may be unique to Chichen Itza and on Lintel 1 of the Temple of the Four Lintels, appears as a string off titles for K’ahk’upakal K’awiil as “Bone-nose’ Ajaw Ch’ajoom”. The foreign elements apparent in the Castillo Viejo texts continues a tradition of foreign cultural exchange that arose out of Terminal Classic sites such as Ceibal and Altar de Sacrificios. These exchanges are what set in motion the beginnings of the Postclassic International Style. It should be noted that International Styles in general have existed throughout Mesoamerica including the relationship between Teotihuacan and the 15 Maya and even earlier with the Olmec, a far reaching and recognizable style that may have very well been the first International Style of ancient Mesoamerica. Methodology One of the primary methods to be used in this study is that of iconographic analysis. Iconography, as the study of visual religious symbolism, often informs broader understandings concerning the archaeology of religion: “The most coherent insights into the belief systems of the past must come, if we exclude from the discussion the information available from written texts, from the analysis of symbolic systems” (Renfrew 1994: 53). As Robb (1998: 338) notes symbols may best be perceived as mosaic tesserae or even legos: “fragments with qualities such as color, shape, and size, inherently arbitrary, that are temporarily assembled and experienced as meaningful by people playing with them”. Because symbols are mental structures framing a cultural world and structuring the thought processes within it, iconography has much in common with an archaeology of symbols (Robb 1998), cognitive-processual archaeology (Flannery and Marcus 1998; Renfrew 1994), and the materialization of ideology (DeMarris et al. 1996). One of the methodological approaches this study will use is commonly known as the direct historical approach. J. H. Steward (1942) described the direct historical approach to archaeology which worked “from the known to the unknown” and used ethnographic data to identify sites and cultural sequences. In his research among the Iroquois, William Fenton (1949) referred to this approach as ‘upstreaming’ which essentially traces traditions to their sources and noted that the direct historical approach is essentially patterns of culture staying stable over long periods of time. According to archaeologist Gordon Willey (1973: 16 153-154), a basic “methodological assumption” in archaeology is that Mesoamerican art and iconography should be approached through the ethnohistoric documentation and then proceed back. The specific historic kind of analogy Willey referred to as ethnographic analogy which has relevance to the New World, where according to Willey (1973:155) “archaeological cultures are frequently interpreted with the aid of ethnographic or ethnohistoric accounts that relate to Indian cultures believed to be in direct line of descent from these archaeological cultures”. The most vocal critic of this approach was George Kubler, a student of Erwin Panofsky whose Principle of Disjunction (1944) primarily dealt with the separation of form and significance in Late Medieval European art, particularly the reinterpretation of borrowed forms of classical antiquity with Christian meaning and the presentation of classical themes in contemporary Christian forms. George Kubler, a strong advocate of Panofsky’s Principle of Disjunction, brought it away from Medieval art and applied it to the art and archaeology of the New World. For Kubler, the Principle of Disjunction assumes discontinuity, therefore, negating the value of ethnographic analogy. Kubler (1970: 143-144) describes his application of the Principle of Disjunction to the New World: We may not use Aztec ritual descriptions as compiled by Sahagun about 1550 to explain murals painted at Teotihuacan a thousand years earlier, for the same reason that we would not easily get agreement in interpreting the Hellenistic images of Palmyra by using Arabic texts on Islamic ritual. The idea of disjunction...makes every ethnological analogy questionable by insisting on discontinuity rather than its opposite when- ever long durations are under discussion. Willey rejected Kubler’s analogy between Hellenistic Palmyra and Arabic texts with Teotihuacan and Aztec ritual. According to Willey, Mesoamerica was much more 17 self-contained within traditional cultural boundaries than the eastern Mediterranean from Hellenistic to Muslim times (1973). Aztec scholar Henry B. Nicholson further criticized Kubler’s analogy: The Chichimec ancestors of the Mexica cannot be fitly compared to the galloping desert warriors of the Prophet who in the seventh and eighth centuries over- ran and spread throughout much of the Near East, North Africa, and Iberia a new religious ideology quite distinct from those that previously flourished in these regions (Nicholson 1976b: 162). When disjunction is applied to the area of study that Panofsky had intended, it can yield valuable insights. Applied elsewhere, however, as Kubler has chosen to do with the New World, the case for disjunction is not as strong. There is little evidence for instance, that ideological shifts on the order of this magnitude ever occurred in pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica between the Late Preclassic-Early Classic and the Conquest. Clearly the burden of proof rests with those arguing for disjunction (Nicholson 1976b). The irony here is that Kubler’s Principal of Disjunction rests on the application of an Old World historical analogy to the New World that is far more extreme than anything he was criticizing among Mesoamerican iconographers. A more recent discussion comes in a study of pre-Classic Maya iconography by Stephen Houston and Karl Taube (2008) who note that elements occurring more than once are ‘graphs’ that can compose ‘scenes’ which consist of many elements that if committed to a sequence can express a ‘narrative’ which is story told in graphic form. ‘Graphs’, ‘scenes’, and visual ‘narratives’ are part of a larger framework which is a graphic ‘system’ (Houston and Taube 2008: 132). The authors propose a set of terms beginning with ‘accretion’ where new graphs, scenes, and narratives are added to old ones; ‘replacement’ 18 where a new inventory of graphs, scenes, and narratives replaces an older set; ‘spall’ which they refer to as a complete loss of graphic inventory; ‘shift’ they describe as a grafting of new meaning that replaces ‘disjunction’ and ‘flow’ which implies continuity and gradual change (Houston and Taube 2008: 133). While Kubler saw high rates of “spall” and “shift” in Mesoamerica, others saw a low rate of “spall” and “shift” and instead perceived the bonds between graphs, scenes, and narrative (Houston and Taube 2008: 133). One of the examples of this stable cultural pattern by Houston and Taube (ibid.) is that of the Mesoamerican rain and Maize gods as presented in diagrams by Miguel Covarrubias (1946) and Karl Taube (1996). In these diagrams, these deities can be readily traced back from the Formative Olmec to Late Postclassic Central Mexico thus proving stable cultural patterns over centuries. To echo Nicholson again, disjunction when applied to the area Panofsky had intended, can be valuable. However, when applied to Mesoamerica, it does not hold very well, this being due to the strong systems in place and the low rates of ‘spall’ and ‘shift’. Iconography can also inform notions of power, ideology and materialization. There was a privileged knowledge that Maya elites were privy to. Manifested in elite art, this knowledge emphasized high culture through connecting political power to cultural and symbolic capital: Cultural and symbolic capital also played a role in power relations among elites themselves. The prominence of scribes and artists in the hieroglyphic and iconographic record suggests that cultural and symbolic capital in the form of mastery of esoteric knowledge could often lead to political power (Inomata 2001: 332) 19 This dissertation will concentrate primarily on the ideology of the sun at Chichen Itza and how this formed a core part of the religious belief of the elite of this site during the Early Postclassic period. A near universal symbol of kingship and royal authority, ancient Maya kings, like in many other parts of the world, took the name of the sun as part of their royal name (Colas 2003). Solar ideology is not a single practice, event, or image but an interrelated set of beliefs, ritual practices, and symbolism revolving around the daily journey and nourishment of the sun. While studies in archaeology need to acknowledge that ideology is not just a top down phenomenon and should consider approaches from the bottom up, given the general lack of information regarding the commoners of Chichen Itza, the bottom up approach for this particular study would be difficult at best. Because sources are rather scant on commoner ideology, I will instead focus on the official ideology, which is that of the dominant class (Hicks 1996: 259). While relying on elite iconography and epigraphy certainly depicts views of the dominant class, royal authority may rest more on notions that derive from a commonly held conception of the natural world. As Houston and Stuart (1996: 309) note, rulership and divinity coalesce “within an idiom of an animating, godly force and represented its compelling extension into the realm of political authority. The grafting of ever-changing ideas about political power on to more broadly held concepts about the nature of the universe probably made those notions more compelling to royal subjects”. Furthermore, As Grove and Gillespie (1992: 16) note: “The assumption that ideology merely legitimates the status quo, and that it “dupes” the masses into accepting the dominance of their masters, treats humans as automatons bereft of creativity and 20 incapable of independent thought (Hodder 1986: 25-26).” Because the masses are not mere “automatons” incapable of thinking for themselves and the fact that there are fundamental cosmological perceptions of the natural world shared by both elites and commoners, ideology then provides the platform to bridge gaps as it were between the religious and the political: “Lying at the nexus between the religious and political worlds, ideology is always something more than a formulation of power; it actively generates cohesion and identity” (Martin 2018: 508). 3 As Inomata (2006: 819) notes, rulers and nobles were bound by cultural and aesthetic values that both elites and non-elites ascribed to. In a study of Maya ideology, David Stuart (2005) limits his focus to describing how ideology intersects with religion and rulership through looking at political authority. Advancements in ideology have come from recent developments in epigraphic and iconographic studies (Stuart 2005; Tsukamoto 2014). Images can be powerful in reinforcing ideology and with over one hundred representations of the sun god, Chichen Itza has more known images of this individual than anywhere else in all Mesoamerica. Chichen Itza is known as a site that is engaging in something brand new and part of this is the elevation of the sun god as a major figure at the site. This was likely both a religious and political strategy. Such a comparison might be made in a strategy employed by Rome in the third century C.E. Displayed images of the Roman sun god, Sol, on currency became small scale reinforcements of imperial authority (Steyn 2014: 42). In ancient Rome, like Simon Martin (2016: 249) has also described ideology as “…a set of interrelated ideas that condition how social participants interpret their world and conduct political action”. 3 21 many cultures in the Old and New World, the sun was a recognizable and all-powerful symbol: Sol appears to have been a god who could cross cultural boundaries and could visually connect the emperor with the sun as a deity for both the Romans and non-Romans. For this reason, Sol was a more effective means for emperors to express the idea of unity to an Empire in turmoil (Steyn 2014: 38). In a study of the materialization of ideology among the Moche, DeMarrais et al. (1996: 16) note, that “materialization” describes “the transformation of ideas, values, stories, myths, and the like into a physical reality—a ceremonial event, a symbolic object, a monument, or a writing system”. The materialization of ideology maintained the social fabric of Moche society through the control of symbolic objects through the elite. Symbolic objects then, as in the case of the Moche may be seen as “a means of communication between elites that integrated their ranks and strengthened their vertical hierarchy” (DeMarrais et al. 1996: 25). As tokens representing meanings, symbols have a material life in which they can be reproduced, exchanged, monopolized, subverted, and destroyed (Robb 1998: 332). These symbols, while constituting pieces of International art styles, could also enforce elite ideologies. As DeMarrais (et al. 1996: 31) notes for Moche culture: Iconography, as materialized ideology, strengthened horizontal ties between elites, creating a pan-Moche culture, at the same time as it reinforced vertical relations by carefully assigning roles to participants in Moche ritual. The iconography that will be discussed in this dissertation draws upon these multiple methodological approaches where images and symbols become “International” and are appropriated by elites in order to maintain specific roles. 22 Organization of Dissertation Chapter 2 will situate the site through its sacred geography and cosmology by focusing on several major themes including cenotes, mythic seas, Atlantean bearers, and the Maize God emergence. I will discuss the cenotes and caves devoted to the rain gods, Chahk and Tlaloc, as these, along with the cenotes, are important markers for foundation and settlement. Water imagery abounds at Chichen Itza, and will be discussed in the context of cenotes, mythic seas, and the daily birth place of the dawning sun. Next, I will discuss the Atlantean bearers found throughout the site, most of them being representations of God N, also known as the Old Man, who is of Maya origin and of considerable antiquity (see Martin 2015). He is a god of directional mountains and the earth. His cosmic duty was to sustain the world and he frequently appears inside turtles and mountains which represent the earth from which the Maize God emerges. I will discuss the Maize God emergence theme, while quite common in Classic Maya art, is also known for Chichen Itza with eight scenes depicting his emergence. However, it is clear that by the Early Postclassic, he did not occupy the same role he once had during the grandeur of the classic period and was perhaps eclipsed by the sun god, who I argue in the next chapter was the major god venerated at the site. Chapter 3 examines the sun god of Chichen Itza, the focal point of solar ideology, and solar symbolism. The sun god of Chichen Itza is a new solar deity that does not have a clear antecedent, though the sites of Ceibal and Ek’ Balam may be good candidates to suggest that a general shift began to occur during the Terminal Classic. While the sun god 23 of Chichen Itza is not the sun god of the Classic Maya, he does appear in solar disks, which is a tradition stemming from Classic Maya representations of the sun god and k’in signs appearing inside solar disks and cartouches. In this chapter, I will trace solar symbolism from the Classic Maya to Late Postclassic Central Mexico including the fret-nosed solar breath serpent, an important motif that was related to the breath of the sun god, the fiery rays of the sun itself, and a probable antecedent to the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl. As Taube (1994, 2015) noted, the Late Postclassic Tonatiuh derives from the sun god of Chichen Itza and with the Jester God brow piece modeled after a Maya king. The sun god’s relationship to heroic kings through impersonation and name glyphs among the Classic Maya will be discussed. Finally, I offer a brief discussion of solar symbolism at Tula, a site contemporaneous with Chichen Itza and conclude the chapter by discussing the legacy of solar symbolism from the Classic Maya and Chichen Itza on Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico. Chapter 4 discusses the plumed serpent, who next to the sun god, may be the most important and widely depicted being at the site. Known as K’uk’ulkan in Yucatan, and Quetzalcoatl in Central Mexico, this being is an important part of the solar ideology of Chichen Itza. In fact, the earliest pairing of the sun god and plumed serpent being appear at Chichen Itza. One particular individual depicted multiple times at Chichen Itza will be discussed including his Tlaloc-serpent rain mask and the elaborate plumed serpent he is consistently paired with. There is little question that this is the figure K’uk’ulkan discussed in the histories. Not all representations of plumed serpents depict the serpent paired with this individual. The role of the plumed serpent is varied but there are several major themes 24 that can be readily identified and will be discussed in this chapter including the plumed serpent as a road, path, or celestial vehicle. As an eastern being of wind that brings the rains, the plumed serpent also serves as the path of another eastern being, the dawning sun. Aside from being the road of the sun, the plumed serpent also serves as a more general road or path marking balustrades of temples indicating the ascent and descent in architecture as well as being the celestial path for warriors. The chapter is concluded by discussing the legacy of the Early Postclassic plumed serpent in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico. Chapter 5 looks at the warrior cult at Chichen Itza and the role the warrior occupies in solar ideology. In fact, as the title of the chapter notes, warriors are essentially agents of the sun who accompany the sun on his daily journey across the sky. Part of the chapter discusses military attire worn by warriors including a butterfly chest pectoral and the tezcacuitlapilli, a solar mirror worn on the lower backs of warriors. Earlier Classic Maya depictions of solar disks are also discussed in relation to the disks depicted at the site including well known archaeological examples from both Chichen Itza and Tula. Warriors in a reclining or flying position will also be analyzed in relation to earlier Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics. The Tzompantli at Chichen Itza will be discussed in this chapter, not only because of the staggering amount of human skulls depicted, but because part of the Tzompantli is dedicated to depictions of warriors in Toltec military attire who are armed with weapons and holding severed human heads. Next, I will describe the appearance of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, a deity well known for Late Postclassic Central Mexico who makes his first appearance at Chichen Itza, in relation to the theme of decapitation displayed on 25 the Tzompantli. This chapter will also discuss several major reoccurring themes found throughout the site including the enigmatic Postclassic sculptures known as Chak Mool and the War Serpent which is derived from earlier Teotihuacan. Chapter 6 will discuss one of the more basic tenets of Mesoamerican civilization, heart sacrifice. At Chichen Itza, like in Late Postclassic Central Mexico, scenes of heart sacrifice are shown explicitly. One of the more obvious expressions can be found among apex predators such as eagles, jaguars, and other beasts. This chapter will also look at the Early Postclassic cuauhxicalli, a vessel meant to hold sacrificial blood and hearts. This chapter returns to the Chak Mool in relation to cuauhxicalli and the concept of heart sacrifice as a cosmogenic act emphasizing centrality and the axis mundi personified by the world tree sprouting from the cut abdomen. Other sacrificial scenes are discussed in terms of centrality including scaffold sacrifice and the offering of blood to solar disks. Finally, the Gold Disks recovered from the Sacred Cenote are discussed in terms of their scenes of sacrifice. Chapter 7 looks at the concept of paradise, widely referred to as Flower World (Hill 1992; Hays-Gilpin and Hill; Taube 2004, 2006) at Chichen Itza and suggests that this site may be the earthly manifestation of what the later Aztec described as the “house of the sun”. The concept of Flower Mountain abounds at Chichen Itza (Headrick 2018; Taube 2004a, 2020) and will be discussed. Concepts of wealth, beauty, and abundance characterize this paradisiacal realm where the avian wind god dances, K’awiil brings offerings of jade and cacao, and the sun god reigns supreme. Other elements of paradise will be discussed including the materiality of energy and matter that denotes this sacred 26 realm. This chapter will also look at the similarities between Cotzumalhuapa and Chichen Itza with an emphasis on flowering vines, music, and cacao being major themes in the artistic repertoire of both sites. Significance of Dissertation Despite the large amount of published information about Chichen Itza, there has been surprisingly little attention regarding state ideology at the site. This remains all the more puzzling considering the staggering amount of visual data available to researchers. In this dissertation, I make the argument that Chichen Itza was a “City of the Sun”, that is a city driven by solar worship, if not completely consumed by it. Despite the perplexing little amount of solar symbolism from Classic and Late Classic Central Mexico, it is likely that the origins of this solar cult can be found among the earlier Classic Maya with it elevating to a level of state ideology at Chichen Itza. The broader goal, evident to the reader, will be to show that the material symbolism and ideology of Chichen Itza emphasizes broader patterns of Mesoamerican culture including those of the earlier Classic Maya, Teotihuacan, Cotzumalhuapa, Ceibal, contemporaneous Tula, and Late Postclassic Central Mexico including the heart of the great Aztec Empire, Tenochtitlan. Chichen Itza was a cosmopolitan city firmly rooted in Classic Maya ideas yet was reimagined in unique ways resulting from the Collapse. As previously mentioned, the idea of a Toltec conquest is simply no longer tenable and perhaps the term “Toltec” regarding particular artistic tropes at Chichen Itza, should be reevaluated. As Schmidt (2011: 121) notes: Rather than attributing the syncretic, but deliberate mix of Maya, Tularelated, and other Mesoamerican iconography evident in the programs of the architectural groups discussed below to the effects of a Toltec conquest, 27 it seems more fruitful to interpret it as a prelude to the dissemination of the Mixteca-Puebla style and symbol system that was adopted to varying degrees by elites in various regions Mesoamerica during the Late Postclassic period (Nicholson 1982). This dissertation follows Schmidt’s suggestion and will strongly suggest throughout that Chichen Itza was a major contributor to the later art styles of Mesoamerica. This is best reflected in solar worship and symbolism where Chichen Itza was the clear cultural intermediator between the Maya and Late Postclassic Central Mexico. While I strongly hold a view that sees the Classic Maya as strong candidates for influencing many aspects of art, religion and ideology in Central Mexico, I also recognize the impact of Central Mexico, most notably of Teotihuacan and Tula among the Maya. Indeed, cultural exchange goes both ways and I will point this out accordingly, though most of this dissertation will be about Early Postclassic Maya influence on Central Mexico. Tula is particularly important for being the likely point of dissemination of Maya influence into central and highland Mexico with Chichen Itza being the logical source of this network of information. A number of themes will run concurrent throughout this dissertation, including the significance of the east as a direction of symbolic and material importance, the Classic Maya origins of the solar cult, the relationship with contemporaneous Tula, the legacy on Western Mesoamerica, and the cultural exchange that forged a Postclassic International Style that was partly influenced by solar ideology and would be appropriated by the later Aztec and other peoples of Late Postclassic Central Mexico. Much like Chichen Itza itself, the Aztec benefitted from a style that was both Maya and Central Mexican. Like the much earlier relationship between Teotihuacan and the Maya, Early Postclassic Mesoamerica 28 was not static and the Maya and Central Mexico continued to be in sustained contact trading material goods and ideology. This dissertation looks at this one piece of the puzzle, a single tesserae in a much larger mosaic that will continue to be expanded upon with future research. 29 Chapter 2: Sacred Geography and Cosmology This chapter will look at cenotes, caves, mythic seas, world bearers, and the emergence of the Maize god as fundamental concepts of Maya cosmology found at Chichen Itza. One of the striking features of the Yucatan peninsula are the many cenotes that dot the landscape, a unique natural feature factored into the ritual and religion of the region’s inhabitants. Unlike the hilly Puuc country and Maya Mountains of Belize, there were no hills or mountains to speak of at Chichen Itza or in the surrounding areas. However, the cenotes were given similar veneration as potent natural features that were imbued with power. The sacred geography of Chichen Itza is based upon the many cenotes connected to the site as well as caves dedicated to the rain god gods. The cenotes at Chichen were likely conceived as mythic seas from where the plumed serpents pulled up the rain and the dawning sun. Beings associated with watery landscapes supported the heavenly vault, royal thrones, and even the emergence of the Maize god, blending themes of both cosmic and political significance. Many of these themes can be traced back to the earlier Classic Maya indicating that the cosmology of Chichen Itza was well rooted in an ancient Maya past. Cenotes, Rain Gods, and Mythic Seas Any modern day visitor to Chichen Itza is sure to notice the two predominant cenotes in the sites core, the huge Sacred Cenote of Sacrifice directly along a sacbe from the Castillo and Cenote Xtoloc along the eastern sacbe from the Osario pyramid (Fig.2.12.2). It is no accident that the site incorporates these two major water features. The very 30 name of Chichen Itza underscores the importance of cenotes as it is generally translated as “at the edge of the [well, cenote, or cave] of the Itza”, or as Piña Chan (1980) referred to it in his book La Ciudad de los Brujos de Agua, “The City of the Water Witches”. The importance of water is what is fundamentally important. As Morley (1947: 12) noted, in an area as dry as the northern lowlands, “…cenotes were the principal factor in determining the location of the ancient centers of population. Where there was a cenote, there, inevitably, a settlement grew up”. According to Angel García-Zambrano (1994: 217-218), finding a proper place to settle was an idea central to ideological and cosmological belief. This chosen piece of landscape was to be representative of the place of creation: … such a place had to recall the mythic moment when the earth was created: an aquatic universe framed by four mountains with a fifth elevation protruding in the middle of the water. The mountain at the core had to be dotted with caves and springs, and sometimes be surrounded by smaller hills. A setting like this duplicated, and forever would freeze, the primordial scene when the waters and the sky separated and the earth sprouted upwards. There is little question that Chichen Itza exists because of the location of these cenotes. It has long been known that Chichen Itza’s central pyramid, the Castillo, was built on an imaginary line drawn between the Cenote of Sacrifice on the north and the Cenote Xtoloc on the south. While these two cenotes occupy the ceremonial center of Chichen Itza, other cenotes likely factored into the layout of the site. Recent work by Guillermo de Anda (de Anda et al. 2019a ) has shown that the Castillo formed the axis mundi in a perfect cosmogram by being flanked by the four other sacred cenotes and with an imaginary line from the Cenote Holtun on the west to the Cenote Kanjuyum on the east passing through the center of the Castillo. Such cosmograms are known for the contemporary Ch’orti’, 31 where the watery landscape is envisioned as five colored lakes at the corners and center of the world (Hull 2020: 217-218). In contemporary Yucatan, Robert Redfield and Alfonso Villa Rojas (1962:114) noted: …the world, the village and the milpa are thought of as squares with four corners lying in the four cardinal points of the compass and with defined central points. It is for this reason that pairs of wooden crosses are erected at only four of the seven actual entrances to the village; these are "the four corners" of the pueblo....The center of the village is marked by the cenote; in most villages it is usual to erect one cross near its edge; this marks the middle point. As previously mentioned, Chichen Itza exists where it does because of the location of these cenotes. The landscape itself, dotted throughout with these cenotes, form cosmograms that recall the primordial landscape of creation and become essential to settlement. The grander and more awe-inspiring cenote of them all is the impressive Sacred Cenote, the pulsating heart of the site and perhaps even the sole reason for initial settlement. As Coggins (1987: 441) notes: …they chose a site with a perfectly round, inaccessible, body of water, which was to serve as a cosmic “scrying”, or divining, vessel...this body of water, the Sacred Cenote, was also viewed as an omphalos mundi, at the sacred center of the religious and political center of the Toltec world. This large well served as the focal point for offerings over the centuries with precious metals from Central America and turquoise from the American Southwest being found in its depths (Coggins and Shane 1984; Lothrop 1952). According to Diego de Landa (1941: 120-121), people were also offered to this sacred body of water: “Sometimes they threw living victims into the well of Chichen Itza, believing that they would come out on 32 the third day, although they never appeared again”. It is clear that the magnificent and opposing Sacred Cenote formed the core of religious and ideological belief at Chichen Itza and that the sites very existence is linked to this natural feature. Despite the importance of the Sacred Cenote, this was not the only cenote in the site core. Cenote Xtoloc has received far less attention probably due to the imposition of the sacred vs. profane distinction on the Sacred Cenote and Cenote Xtoloc which has tended to marginalize the latter in archaeological thinking where it has been assumed that because the Sacred Cenote was used for ritual and sacrifice, Xtoloc must have been used as a purely domestic water source (Morley [1946] 2015: 51-52). These characterizations appear to reflect Western dichotomies of sacred and profane, especially when one takes into account that all water was considered sacred by the Maya. Furthermore, the location of Cenote Xtoloc with its nearby temple, sacbe, and architecture leading to and around the cenote suggests that it had a far more important function and was a sacred location for ritual activity. A stairway may have led directly from the temple where there are a large number of blocks and rubble that indicate a possible path leading directly from the temple down to the cenote. Furthermore, there appears to be steps about 3 meters down that would have led straight to the water. Ann Morris (1931: 191) noted the construction that would have led down to the cenote: Steps of cut stone at one time led from its brink, winding down the curving side to the water level. To-day these have disappeared and a steep rough path is all that remains. However, when the water level is low, as it becomes in a very dry season, a few squared and smooth blocks can be seen below the water’s edge. 33 The architecture built around the cenote indicates that this would have been an important place. While the temple does not directly face the cenote, it would have offered easy access to the cenote and perhaps directly from the temple. It is possible that the Templo del Xtoloc served an important stop in a ritual circuit that started at the Osario and followed Sacbe 15 to the temple and then culminated in walking down to the cenote itself. As Redfield (1941:117) reminds us, however, that cenotes used for utilitarian water use are still sacred landmarks and are named in prayer by the Maya today. In contemporary Yukatek thought, cenotes were also the terrestrial sources of the winds, which were thought to come from the sea: The cenotes are particularly the sources of the winds. As the water makes its cycle, carried by the rain-gods from the cenotes up into the sky to fall as fertilizing rain upon the milpa, so the winds have their sources in the sea and pass up through the cenotes. Therefore, in certain ceremonies offerings are thrown into the cenotes to propitiate the winds (Redfield 1940: 118119). Winds are often invoked for the sole purpose of bringing the rain. An explicit example of this comes from a prayer during the Ch’aa Chaak ceremony in the Yucatan. The prayer is intended to invoke the winds to move and bring the fructifying rain over the earth: I also commend this food to the winds who come for the first time and for the wind that spies from behind the stones, without forgetting the great winds who emerge from caves. Lord, Chaak, we call on all the rain gods, the lords of these winds. I offer this food to you. I also ask that the lords of the wind move the clouds so that they may water the milpas of their children (Gongora Camara and Preuss1990) The prayer mentioned above describes Lord Chaak as the lord of the winds. On Uxmal Stela 14, two small duck-billed wind beings appear with the ruler who is named in 34 the accompanying text as Lord Chahk standing over a cenote with two floating dead and bloated captives in its depths (Kowalski 1985: n. 15). This scene is clearly meant to show the two small dwarfish wind gods as subservient to the much larger Lord Chahk who towers above them and stands over the cenote triumphantly. Rather than just being named as Lord Chahk in the text, the ruler also appears in the attire of the rain deity such as a broad brimmed hat which also appears on Chahk at Izimte Stela 12, the Puuc murals of Mulchic, and Oxkintok Stela 12. As a being of rain, thunder, and lightning, he is also controller of wind as mentioned above. This relationship between wind and rain extends beyond the Yucatan. The Tzotzil of San Andres Larianzar have a striking explanation of the rainmaking process: Those who control the wind and rain inhabit the caves and are generally called chauk, which is probably cognate of chac, the ancient Maya rain god. When there is thunder and lightning during a rainstorm, the Indians believe that it is an angel leaping out of a cave and into the sky where it sprinkles water from a huge jug which falls to the earth as rain. When the wind blows, it is because an angel in a cave has exhaled (Holland 1962: 127). Chahk, as ‘Lord of the Winds’, is vividly portrayed on pages 12 to 18 of the Codex Madrid which depict explicit acts of rainmaking with a series of flying crested rattlesnakes emptying water jars given them by the Chahks. As the Late Postclassic Aztec noted, Quetzalcoatl was the guide, “the roadsweeper of the rain gods, of the masters of water, of those who brought rain” (Sahagún 1950-82: I: 9). In these Codex Madrid scenes, they are bringing the rain which is given them by the Chahks recalling the ethnographic information of the Chahks being controllers of both the winds and the rain. 35 The Rain Cult As much as the Sacred Cenote and Cenote Xtoloc are considered part of the site core of Chichen Itza, so too should the caves that were dedicated to the rain cult. The cave of Balankanche was discovered in 1959, with the monograph by E. Wyllys Andrews IV (1970) documenting the large amount of intact incensarios and cached artifacts such as miniature manos, metates, and spindle whorls. Perhaps most significant, were the 70 incensarios, many of which depicted the Central Mexican rain god, Tlaloc (Fig.2.3). In some examples, the Tlaloc braziers have the distinct nose of Chahk which means they were fusing aspects of the Central Mexican and Maya rain deities at this time (Fig.2.4a). 4 This fusion of Tlaloc and Chahk carried on into the Late Postclassic on a vessel from Mayapan depicting Chahk with the goggle eyes of Tlaloc as well as Stela 2 from Cozumel (Taube 1992: fig. 73e) (Fig.2.4b). In 2018, Guillermo de Anda, Director of the Proyecto Gran Aquifero Maya, brought worldwide attention to a long held though little-known secret (de Anda et al. 2019). This secret was the cave of Balamkú, a virtual intact and undisturbed Balankanche. The history of this cave began in 1966 when ejidatarios Eleuterio, Mariano and Esteban Mazón, Ermilo, Jacinto and Pascual Un Noh, from San Felipe near Chichén Itzá notified the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) that there was a cave containing a 4 It is interesting that despite the significance of Tlaloc at Chichen Itza, the Late Postclassic rain cult in Yucatan seems dedicated exclusively to Chahk. This is reflected in the Maya codices where there is not a single appearance of Tlaloc. 36 significant amount of archaeological material. Archaeologist Victor Segovia Pinto, who had also worked at Balamkanché, visited the cave and shortly thereafter ordered its entrance sealed and buried and it remained that way until the summer of 2018. Segovia produced a short report that documented some 155 vessels, many depicting the rain god Tlaloc that were almost identical to the ones from Balamkanché (Fig.2.4c). Like the Sacred Cenote and Cenote Xtoloc, the caves Balamkanché and Balamkú would have also been magnets drawing settlement to the area. The fact that there are sacbeob linking Chichen Itza directly to these caves devoted to Tlaloc are statements of appropriation that tied these landmarks as appendages to the site core. Clearly, they were considered focal points of first importance. Interestingly, no Tlaloc incensarios have been found in the Sacred Cenote, unlike the large number found in the caves of Balamkanché and Balamkú. However, there was a fragment of a Tlaloc statue found in Cenote Holtun (de Anda, pers. comm. 2017). Tlaloc imagery is not restricted to the caves of Balamkanché and Balamkú but occurs in the ceremonial center of Chichen Itza itself. A stone Tlaloc head was found on the floor of the southwest corner of Structure 3C15 while Structure 7B4 yielded no less than 9 stone Tlaloc heads (Ruppert 1952: fig. 128b, 150d) (Fig. 2.5). While Ruppert refers to these as incensarios, they may have actually been used as supports of buildings. They are still finding these stone Tlaloc heads in excavations at Chichen Itza, with one found in the recent excavations of Structure 2D6 (Geoffrey Braswell, pers. comm. 2017). Furthermore, a number of individuals appear as Tlaloc on the pillars from the Temple of the Warriors, which refer to a more martial side of this deity (Morris et al. 1931: pl. 44, 59, 117). Like 37 Tlaloc, Chahk also had a martial aspect that referred to him being a warrior and sacrificer. In the Puuc murals of Mulchic, which lies between Kabah and Uxmal, Chahk appears armed with an axe and a shield. Murals from the Temple of the Chacmool at Chichen Itza depict Chahk wearing the broad brimmed hat with the snake emerging from his mouth. brandishing his lightning axe and shield like his appearance in the Mulchic mural. An earlier appearance occurs at Oxkintok Stela 12 where Chahk once again appears with broad brimmed hat, breath snake emerging from mouth, and brandishing his lightning serpent and shield. Such depictions of an armed Chahk are meant to show his martial side, perhaps equating him to violent storms with lightning and thunder. In fact, the serpents emerging from the mouth of Chahk may be a reference to lightning rather than breath, a convention that can be found in Hopi ritual from the American Southwest. Aside from the cenotes and caves making up the sacred landscape of Chichen Itza, there was also the representation of bodies of water reflecting the mythic seas from where the dawning sun and rains came from. Abundant aquatic worlds and waterscapes were created at Chichen Itza which reflect the many cenotes, large pools of water representing versions of mythic seas. In Classic Maya art, watery bands are frequently marked by dotted depictions of water, representations of surging mythic seas (see Houston and Finamore 2010). One of the most elaborate depictions of water occurs on the North Acropolis of Calakmul turning the whole plaza into one huge sea (Miller and O’Neil 2010: 30-31). Watery bands occur in murals such as those from Tomb 1 at Rio Azul as well as on ceramics. Aquatic bands depicting bubbling waters appears on a tripod dish from Uaxactun (Finamore and Houston 2010: cat. 2). 38 Chichen Itza depicts many images of the sea. Gold Disk G recovered from the Sacred Cenote depicts a naval battle (Lothrop 1952: fig. 35). With this disk, not only do we see what’s happening on the surface but also what is taking place underneath the water. The waters teem with fish, important to the artist to convey this battle is taking place in the sea. The mural from the Temple of the Warriors depicts the choppy seas being navigated by people in canoes along a coastal village (Morris et al. 1931: pl.159). The clear blue water is filled with aquatic creatures including fish, crab, stingray, and a sea turtle. In a Late Postclassic mural from Mayapan, fish swim in the wavy and choppy waters of a mythic sea where a crocodile is bound. One of the denizens of this sea is the plumed serpent, whose body is marked like the plumed serpents known for the contemporaneous Codex Madrid. The plumed serpent is essentially an aquatic being who traverses the sky while carrying the dawning sun and the rain-filled clouds. These plumed or feathered serpents are aquatic beings, inhabitants of mythic seas conceptualized in local bodies of water such as cenotes and lakes. Feathered sea serpents who live in the deep depths of the cenotes pull up the sun and rain gods from these mythic seas which are small scale versions of the Caribbean ocean to the east. The plumed serpent carrying the sun and rain gods merge two of the most splendid and desired celestial events originating in the east. In terms of the great feathered sea serpents and rain gods being the pre-eminent rain bringers, the sun may also play a role in bringing rain out of the eastern sea. One aspect of the sun god as a fishy and watery being at Palenque is known as GI, and is fused with the rain god, Chahk, particularly evident in his spondylus shell earrings. Such a merging of deity attributes may allude to the event of 39 clouds moving from east to west which is the same path as the sun (Houston 2010: 74). The sun god is connected to the eastern sea since this is the daily location of his birth and death. One Early Classic lidded vessel depicts the sun god paddling through a sea marked by a chain of flowers, a floral road which the sun travels on his daily ascent (Finamore and Houston 2010: cat. 66). As Taube (2010a: 217) notes: “The daily dawn event of mist rising out of lakes and rivers vividly illustrates the power of the sun in pulling clouds and moisture into the sky”. Chichen Itza abounds with water imagery, fitting for the cenotes found throughout the site, with many depictions being found on lower registers denoting the watery underworld with reclining individuals grasping onto flowering plants. While fish nibbling waterlilies in bubbling aquatic waterscapes would seem to portray these fish as aquatic hummingbirds, such aquatic hummingbirds are depicted in the lower registers from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars. Here, reclining figures grasp on to the vines of water lily plants as others emerge from blossoming flowers with bejeweled hummingbirds drinking from the open chests of ancestors emerging from open flowers (Fig.2.6a). A very similar scene is found at Uxmal where two reclining figures wearing avian headdresses grasp on to the vines of flowering plants amongst fish (Fig.2.6b). The scene from Chichen Itza is likely derived from this earlier one at Uxmal. This watery imagery is shown with waterlilies suggesting the presence of subterranean waters. Part of the glyph for “pool” or “sea” is nahb, shown in part with a waterlily (Houston 2010a: 74). Waterlilies frequently appear as headdresses for Atlantean subordinates who appear in watery abodes below supporting kings or thrones. As Houston (2010a: 74-75) notes, such imagery draws upon two 40 metaphors, one being using waterlilies suggesting subterranean waters, the other being “to highlight the service of courtiers tireless supporters of the royal throne and herculean supporters of the world itself”. The lower register from the murals in the Upper Temple of the Jaguar depict such watery underworld beings in the position of world bearers (Fig. 2.6c). Cosmic World Pillars One of the clear artistic and cosmological tropes at Chichen Itza can be found in the many depictions of atlantean bearers that support the sky and those who more accurately support the universe. This is one of the more ancient visual expressions of cosmology in Mesoamerica going back to at least the Early Formative Olmec Potrero Nuevo Monument 2, where two dwarves sustain a throne with upraised arms (Coe and Diehl 1980: I: fig. 496). In colonial sources from Yucatan, these figures are known as Bakabs and were placed in the four quarters of the world where they supported the sky with a year bearer appropriated to each of them (Tozzer 1941: 135-136). According to Diego de Landa, “Among the multitudes of gods which this nation worshipped they worshipped four, each of them called Bacab. They said that they were four brothers whom God placed, when he created the world, at the four points of it, holding up the sky so that it should not fall” (Tozzer 1941: 135). According to the Chilam Balam of Chumayel, “There would be a sudden rush of water when the theft of the insignia <of Oxlahun-ti-ku> occurred. Then the sky would fall, it would fall down upon the earth, when the four gods, the four Bacabs, were set up, who brought about the destruction of the world” (Roys 1967: 99-100). This document also mentions the “angels of the winds” known as Pauahtun’s who 41 were created … “when the world was not yet lighted, when there was neither heaven nor earth: the Red Pauahtun, the White Pauhahtun, the Black Pauauhtun, and Yellow Pauahtun” (Roys 1967: 110). Furthermore, the Maya rain deity, Chahk, was conceived as quadripartite as was the Central Mexican Tlaloc and the Zapotec Cocijo. Thompson (1934: 216) notes that the Bakabs, Chahks, and Pawahtuns may have been thought to exist on different celestial or terrestrial planes. In contemporary Maya thought, the world is square like a house or field and rests on four pillars like a house (Guiteras-Holmes 1961: 254, 285). Among the Zinanteco Tzoztzil, Vaxak men were seen as pillars, serpents and men who held the earth up on their shoulders and in some cases were referred to as ‘oy b’ alamil “cosmic pillars” or “Posts of the Earth” (Laughlin 1975: 71, 364). While the vaxak men are always directional, there is some variance. For instance, in Zinacantan, the four vaxak men are cardinal while in Chamula they are intercardinal (Vogt 1966: 91-92; GuiterasHolmes 1961: 118). The Larrinzar Tzotzil see four of the eight vaxak men as the intercardinal Kuch Vinajel-B’alumil “Bearers of Sky and Earth” (Lamb 2005: 167-168). Wind Gods In Classic Maya art, thrones and rulers are often supported by subordinates who carry the burden of sustaining them. One of the principal duties was to sustain the throne which was a metaphor for sustaining the world. The Del Rio throne from Palenque for instance, depicts two young men with waterlily headdresses sustaining the throne (Matthews and Schele 1979). Other examples from Palenque show individuals serving as seats for nobles and lords who sit or stand on their backs. One such figure from the Tablet of the Slaves supports an individual holding a “drum major” headdress (Fig.2.7a). This 42 individual may be an early version of a duck-billed wind being who among other duties, seemed to have held the important job of a sustaining sky and world bearer. A sculpture of a world supporting Atlantean was found on top of the Osario pyramid at Chichen Itza (Fig.2.7b). This figure is avian with a prominent beak. Another representation of this being was found in the Northwest corner of the Northwest colonnade (Fig.2.7c). In this representation, the figure wears a segmented headband with a single flower in the center of the brow. As Karl Taube (2004a) has demonstrated, this floral headband marks flower mountains in Maya art as well as the ethereal wind god. Significantly, the sculpture found on top of the Osario is a sky or world bearing representation of a predecessor to the Late Postclassic central Mexican Ehecatl, the duck-billed aspect of Quetzalcoatl. The avian wind god was a being of great antiquity with earlier examples being the Late Preclassic Tuxtla Statuette and a still earlier Mokaya phase vessel (Taube et al. 2010: 48-49). Thanks to the epigraphic work of David Stuart, we know that in Classic period times, the Maya referred to this duck-billed being as Ik’ K’uh ‘Wind God’ which named a duck-billed impersonator and subordinate of King Bird Jaguar IV on Yaxchilan, Hieroglyphic Stairway 2, Step X. This individual also wears a waterlily headdress, a common attribute of individuals who held this burden. Uxmal Stela 14 mentioned above, depicts Lord Chahk standing triumphantly over a cenote with bound captives within its depths. The two small Ik’ K’uh stand as subservient, their small stature recalling the dwarfish tlaloque from Central Mexico who are subservient to the rain God, Tlaloc (Fig.2.8a). There are likely cosmological and political connotations here; the Lord Chahk as the impersonator of the 43 pre-eminent rain deity is Lord over the winds but also reflects his role as ruler with his smaller attendants standing passively by. The Ik’ K’uh are a set of Atlanteans that sustain the heavenly or worldly vault. Fray Diego López Cogolludo (1954:1:352) writes that the closely related Bakabs not only supported the sky but were also wind gods. Classic evidence to support this comes from a pair of leg supports for a throne at Dos Pilas depicting K’inich Ajaw, the Maya Sun God (Chinchilla 1990; Houston 2010b; Stuart 2009) (Fig.2.8b). Excavated by Oswaldo Chinchilla (1990), these supports depict two duck-billed Ik’ K’uh as supporters of the throne. As Houston (2010b:99) notes, these blocks from Dos Pilas carry both cosmic and political connotations. The cosmic connotation of this depiction of wind beings supporting the sun recalls an account in the Florentine Codex, where it was the breath of Ehecatl that first put the sun in motion (Sahagún 1950-82: Book 7:7-8). In Late Postclassic Central and Southern Mexico, major deities take on this burden. Nine Wind, the duck-billed wind god appears in the Mixtec Codex Nuttall supporting a watery tableau while in the Codex Borgia and Vaticanus B codices Ehecatl supports the night sky (Fig.2.8c-d). In Aztec stone sculpture, Ehecatl is depicted as a sky bearer (Fig.2.8e). God N, the Old Man One of the major gods depicted at Chichen Itza is an old deity of Maya origin who has no clear counterpart in Central Mexico. Known as God N, this deity frequently appears as an old man wearing a turtle shell or conch on his back. In other representations, he appears as a spider. A Tepeu 1 polychrome vessel from the Peten depicts him as a spider smoking a cigar and holding the sun and the moon as if he was in control of the two most 44 powerful forces in the universe (Taube 1994: fig. 5b) (Fig.2.9a). He was a directional deity, closely associated with world mountains and subjected to the cosmological duty of sustaining the world. In Classic Maya art, God N, also known as the Old Man God, is a bearer of thrones, and bears the burden of supporting the Sepulturas Bench at Copan (Fig.2.9b). On the Late Classic La Corona Panel 6 (see Stuart 2013), two aged God N bearers serve as support columns sustaining a structure that carries the Water Serpent, an embodiment of terrestrial water such as rivers, lakes, and streams (Coltman 2015; Stuart 2007; Taube 1994: 215) (Fig.2.9c). Four youthful impersonators of “Pawahtuns” on Panel 1 from Pomona hold glyphs associated with the seating of the first month of the new year. As Stuart (2004: 4) notes, there were originally four of these figures who are “the closest Classic correspondence to the year bearers of the Postclassic”. Known as Izam, these sky and world bearing figures can appear with both aged and youthful aspects that often merge with the identities of subordinate lords. A panel from Laxtunich depicts two youthful bearers supporting a large stone slab that may be depicting the actual monument itself (Houston 2021) (Fig.2.9d). Presumably of a watery locale, these young able bodied Itzam characters found on the panels from both Pomona and Laxtunich do not appear with typical Old God N characteristics like aged features or turtle shells (Stuart 2007). However, the watery plants and fish in their hairdos clearly associate them with both the old God N and the duck billed Ik' k’uh found at other sites such as Dos Pilas and Yaxchilan (Coltman 2015). The Old Man God has the same attributes as the younger bearers despite the wrinkled features that label him as an elder and the stone markings on his body that mark him as a mountain deity. The Atlantean Itzam and Ik’k’uh may therefore be referred to as 45 “world bearers” whose duty of securing the sky could metaphorically extend to include the roof of a house or flat slab of a throne, roles that were mirrored by vassals in terms of political support (Houston 1998: 354-355). At Chichen Itza, there are literally dozens upon dozens of representations of God N in his role as an Atlantean world bearer. Thompson (1934: 235) notes that in Jean Charlot’s discussion of Atlantean figures at Chichen Itza, he identifies three variants appearing in univalve shells, spider web, and turtle shell. However, as Thompson notes, there are two types of shells: “These, so far as one can judge from the drawings, can be classified as a fresh-water shell probably belonging to the genus Planorbis, and another shell resembling somewhat a conch, but possibly belonging to the Helix genus of land snails” (ibid.). The ancient Maya probably cared little as to what shell was being depicted and most seem to represent some form of conch. At the Initial Series Group on the northern and eastern House of the Phalli at Chichen Itza, God N appears in all three guises in the act of bloodletting to conjure powerful supernatural forces such as plumed serpents that emerge from bowls, quite likely an act of conjuring wind and rain (Schmidt 2007: fig. 139; Taube et al. 2020). According to Foster and Wren (1997). God N at Chichen Itza represents the First Father, the primordial male god of Maya cosmology. This figure is also well represented on both upper and lower registers where he emerges from a cleft witz ‘mountain’ with arms lifted in a supporting position. Figures with outstretched arms that may represent versions of God N emerging from cleft witz heads appear on the upper and lower registers on carved relief pillars from the Inner Lower Temple of the Big Tables (Schmidt 2011: fig. 8). As 46 Taube (1994:216) notes, bas-relief columns depicting warriors from Pyramid B at Tula are bracketed by the head of Cipactli, the caiman who also serves as a metaphor for the world. Because these God N figures emerging from cleft mountains sometimes appear on both the upper and lower registers, it may be that this old man is a universal bearer. The largest and most detailed depiction of God N at Chichen Itza is his representation from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where he appears in his customary turtle shell, and has the waterlily and fish headdress which relates him to earlier watery characters appearing on the Del Rio Throne of Palenque, and the carved panels from Laxtunich and Pomona (Fig.2.10). He appears as the central figure between four large serpent heads at the four directions, a quincunxial model and cosmological pattern going clear back to the Formative Olmec. Reliefs from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars depict four representations of the old man known as God N which appear on the South column while the North column depicts four images of Ix Chel or Goddess O (Tozzer 1957: Figs. 195, 196, 615) (Fig.2.11a-b). The two deities paired together form male and female complimentary and quadripartite representations of Atlantean bearers. As Simon Martin (2015: 218) notes: “For Mesoamericans, the ultimate act of sorcery was the creation of the universe, and the founding gods are typically a male-female pair of elderly magicians”. This pairing of the Old Man and Ix Chel may indicate that they are a creator couple like Xpiyacoc and Xmucane of the colonial Popol Vuh (Schele and Matthews 1998: 215). For the sixteenth century Pokomam Maya, Xchel and Xtamna, cognates of the Yucatec Ix Chel and Itzamna are described as the old creator couple (Taube 1992: 99). Martin (2015: 221-223) goes on to convincingly show that this aged and powerful creator couple has parallels in Central 47 Mexico with Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, Tonacatecuhtli and Tonacacihuatl, Citlallatonac and Citlalinicue, and Cipactonal and Oxomoco. The jambs from the Temple of the Warriors depict large scale representations of the old God N wearing his turtle shell and oyohualli pendant (Fig. 2.12a-b). The upper and lower registers on the four-sided columns on the top of the Temple of the Big Tables depict some of the most detailed God N figures (Castillo Borges 1998). Women also appear in this role and these images may allude to the examples from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where God N and Goddess O appear as quadripartite Atlanteans (Seler 1990-1996: VI, fig. 140-173) (Fig.2.13). Sky bearers are prominent in the Late Postclassic Borgia Group of codices. In the Late Postclassic Borgia and Vaticanus B, there are four sky bearers; Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, Ehecatl Quetzalcoatl, Xiuhtecuhtli, and Mictlantecuhtli. The Aztec Bilimek Pulque Vessel depicts Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, Ehecatl, and Xiuhtecuhtli with the fourth sky bearer possibly being the skeletal goddess, Ilamatecuhtli-Cihuacoatl displayed on the back of the vessel (Taube 1993: 13). This goddess is actually depicted as a Toltec warrior with flint blades attached to her arms, a convention similar to a Chak Mool from Tula (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 31). Furthermore, the goddess on the back of the Bilimek Pulque vessel wears the butterfly chest pectoral, a common piece of attire worn by warriors at Chichen Itza, Tula, and Tenochtitlan. While the old God N is clearly the most important and widely depicted world bearer at Chichen Itza, there are others. It is interesting that all the other Atlantean figures appear as stand alone stone sculptures with the largest appearing in the Initial Series Group. One pair may have once supported a lintel with an Initial Series date of 10.2.9.1.9 which 48 corresponds to 878 C.E. (Schmidt 2011: 179) (Fig.2.14a). Edward H. Thompson noted that the lintel once rested on top of the Atlantean figures (Weitzel 1946: 54). These atlanteans supporting a lintel recalls the supporting of the earlier Laxtunich panel. Another pair of large atlanteans from the House of the Shells in the Phalli complex wear the tezcacuitlapilli solar back mirror of warriors (Schmidt 2003: figs. 37, 38) (Fig. 2.14b). While the largest Atlantean bearers occur in the Initial Series Group, there are a number of smaller Atlanteans appearing throughout the site. One of the largest concentrations occurs in the Temple of the Warriors where they support a large throne (Morris et al. 1931: 16-20) (Fig.2.15). These small Atlantean bearers also appear on the Temple of the Big Tables where they support an altar (Castillo Borges 1998: 130-155). There are sky or world bearers known for Tula as well where they appear with their arms upraised (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 23-30, 152-153). While the monumental stone sculptures on Pyramid B are frequently referred to as Atlantean due to their size, I instead use the term Atlantean to refer to those whose arms are extended in an upright position to hold or sustain rulers, monuments, or the heavenly firmament. The Atlantean Itzam and Ik’ K’uh are essentially “world bearers” whose duty of securing the sky could metaphorically extend to include the roof of a house or flat slab of a throne, roles that were mirrored by vassals in terms of political support (Houston 1998:354-355). Their service was both cosmological and political; supporting rulers as expressions of the servitude to political authority while simultaneously demonstrating a cosmological duty to universal order (Martin 2015). The idea of the Atlantean bearer was particularly developed at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza where some examples appear as 49 smaller representations recalling the Olmec sky bearers but in other cases appear in more monumental form at the Initial Series. Among the Maya, gods also occupied this burden of bearing the heavens as can be seen in the representations of God N, Goddess O, and an avian predecessor to the Late Postclassic Ehecatl. The representation of Ehecatl as Atlantean bearer has roots in the Classic period among the Ik’ K’uh. Among the Classic Maya, the Ik ’K’uh could support the throne of K’inich Ajaw, the Sun God, while old decrepit men known as Izam, could support the sinuous and bubbly personification of standing water, a serpent known as witz’ (Coltman 2015; Stuart 2007). The Maize God Emergence Theme The Maize God was the epitome of Classic Maya civilization, a deity who embodied both beauty and bounty and who kings would frequently impersonate. A major theme in Classic Maya art is the emergence or resurrection of the Maize God out of the turtle earth (Taube 1985). One of the more well-known scenes is from the so called “Resurrection Plate” which depicts the Maize God emerging from the turtle earth flanked by his sons, the Hero Twins, Junahpu and Xbalanque (Fig.2.16a). There are a number of other Late Classic resurrection scenes depicting the same scenario. One of the earliest scenes of the Maize God in the turtle earth occurs on the west wall at Late Pre-Classic San Bartolo where the maize god sits within a quatrefoil between the god of rain and lightning Chahk, and the god of terrestrial water, known as witz’ (Taube et al. 2010: 73-78). The quatrefoil rests on the back of a large turtle. In Late Classic Maize God resurrection scenes, he consistently rises from the center of the turtle carapace. There are other beings that frequently emerge from either end of the turtle. In many representations, one of the beings 50 emerging from the turtle is God N whose primary attribute is a turtle shell (see K9174, K681) (Fig. 2.16b-c). A column from Ek’ Balam depicts God N emerging from one end of a turtle that supports a large serpent carrying the ruler Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ (Taube et al. 2020: fig. 55). A capstone from Ek’ Balam depicts Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ named as the Maize God and sitting on a throne that has the head of God N coming out of one end much like he does in Maize God resurrection scenes (Fig.2.16d). While many scenes depict the Maize God emergence out of the turtle earth, he also frequently emerges from mountains. Mountains and turtle carapaces have the same V-cleft opening that is symbolic of emergence and birth (Furst 1981). On Bonampak Stela 1, the Maize God emerges from a cleft mountain (Fig.2.17a). Lintel 3 from Temple IV at Tikal depicts four directional Maize Gods in mountains (Fig.2.17b). This Classic Maya theme of the Maize God emergence from a cleft mountain continued at Chichen Itza but strangely, only in one single program. There are eight scenes of the Maize God emergence depicted on the upper registers of the piers in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars (Fig.2.17c-d). Here the Maize God does not emerge from the cleft of a turtle carapace but from mountains. With two figures emerging from each end of the mountain like Classic Maya representations of turtles, it is easy to see that the turtle and mountain are interchangeable as representations of the earth from which the Maize God emerges. The visual trope of maize emerging from the cleft earth goes clear back to Olmec conceptions of maize. The link between world bearing Atlanteans and the emergence of the Maize God from the turtle earth is intentional and fundamental to Maya cosmology. God N is clearly identified with the turtle earth and mountains and likely provides support for the emergence of the Maize 51 God. The program on the pillars in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars can be read as the ancestral couple of God N and Goddess O supporting the major event that is the resurrection of the Maize God out of the fertile earth. While the Maize God was still relevant at Chichen Itza, he was no longer the major force that he was in the Classic period. In fact, the coming ideological shift may even be seen at Terminal Classic Ek’ Balam where Ukit Kan Le’k Tok’ Balam is portrayed as the Maize God on his painted tomb capstone (801 C.E.). Yet on Stela 1 (840 C.E.) he is later apotheosized as the Sun God. This may be reflective of a shift in representation during the early 9th century A.D. A number of Late Postclassic Maya figures have been identified as the diving Maize God, including a stucco from Structure 25 at Tulum (Taube 1992: 41, fig. 18a) ). Another representation of this being occurs in the murals of Tulum (Fig.2.18a). A similar representation of this deity appears in the murals of Tancah (Fig.2.18b). A cave in the vicinity of Homun, Yucatan, is well known for its sheer number of red handprints that adorn its walls and bears the appropriate name of Cueva Manitas. An etching or graffito on one of its walls reveals the profile of an individual whose characteristics are very similar to other depictions of individuals in the Late Postclassic Northern lowlands (Fig.2.18c). Close examination of the head of the individual reveals a cleft with a probable maize cob indicating that this is a rare etching of the Late Postclassic Maya Maize God on the cave wall. While the Maize god was certainly present in Late Postclassic Yucatan, he didn’t appear to occupy the same veneration he garnered during the Classic period. 52 The Atlantean Bearer in Late Postclassic Central Mexico The Codex Borgia depicts four deities on pages 49-52 with upraised arms supporting the nightly firmament with its cognate in Codex Vanticanus B pages 19-22. In both codices, the deities represented are Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, Xiuhtecuhtli, EhecatlQuetzalcoatl, and Mictlantecuhtli. Three out of the four sky bearers are readily identifiable on the Bilimek Pulque Vessel as Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl, and Xiuhtecuhtli. Taube (1993: 13) identified the fourth as Ilamatecuhtli-Cihuacoatl, the principal goddess splayed on the back of the vessel. As Taube noted, these sky bearers correspond to the sky bearers in the Codex Borgia and Vaticanus B pages with Ilamatecuhtli-Cihuacotsal taking the place of Mictlantecuhtli. One of the richest sources of information regarding the Tzitzimime comes from the colonial Cronica mexicana of Tezozomoc which reveals much about the tzitzimime in the context of renovations to the Templo Mayor by various Aztec kings. The accounts related by Tezozomoc include Moctezuma’s renovation, which described the Tzitzimime as “angels of the air, sustainers of the sky” (1878: 358). This account had a profound influence on Eduard Seler (19021903: 89-90; 1963: II: 105) during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century where he discussed the sky bearers in the Codex Borgia and Vaticanus B as stars and constellations that would descend to earth in the form of Tzitzimime. During Tizoc’s renovation, they were described as “gods of the air that bring the rains, waters, thunder, lightning, and lightning bolts” (1878: 451). This passage has caused some authors (Graulich 2000; López Austin 1997) to find a subtle correlate between the 53 Tzitzimime and the Tlaloque, the dwarfish rain gods that also control the little winds or ehecatotontin. This statement would also find support with Serna’s (1953) equating the closely related Cihuateteo with rain bringing clouds. Lastly, during Ahuitzotl’s renovation, they are described as “signs and planets”. Clearly from this we can ascertain that the Tzitzimime had an astral aspect as the stars and planets in the night sky, which is in general agreement with accounts of Tzitzimime in Sahagun. These three accounts have shaped contemporary understanding about what the Tzitzimime represented perhaps more than any other for they give us their roles as stellar, sky bearing and rain bringing deities. Graulich (2000: 172) sees the souls of dead warriors, stars, Tzitzimime, sky bearers, tlaloque and wind gods all intermingling, particularly during the night where “warriors became stars and Tzitzimime, either as bearers of the celestial vault or as shooting stars when they descend on earth” Boone (1999) has made the convincing argument that the Tzitzimime said from ethnohistoric sources to surround Huitzilopochtli at the Templo Mayor included the monumental Coatlicue and Yolotlicue scilptures. As Boone (1999: 198) notes, “…of all the images of identifiable supernaturals in the Aztec corpus, it is the Tzitzimitl that shares the most features with the monumental “Coatlicue” sculptures”. While Boone (1999: 204) saw the Tzitzimime sculptures as antagonistic to Huitzilopochtli, Cecelia Klein (2008) has argued that they were benevolent creator goddesses who sacrificed themselves in order to enable creation and the survival of the universe. Furthermore, “…there is no record of Huitzilopochtli ever having gone to battle against the Tztizimime” (Klein 2008: 243).Klein (2008: 244) relates an account from the Historia de los Mexicanos por sus pinturas (Garcia 54 Icazbalceta 1891: 24), which mentions the veneration of five mantas of women created by Tezcatlipoca who died during the creation of the sun. As discussed previously, a common sculptural form at Chichen Itza is that of the Atlantean bearer. These are seen on pillars from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where quadripartite God N and Goddess O figures support the emergence of the Maize God from a mountain. Long ago, Thompson (1934), suggested that God N was an early form of Tzitzimime sky bearer known for Late Postclassic Central Mexico. While there are certainly overlaps between the sky bearers in Central Mexico and those at Chichen Itza, there is very little evidence to suggest that God N was a Tzitzimitl. One of the reasons for Thompson making this connection was that God N can appear in spider form and one of the forms the Tzitzimime take is that of a spider. However, this remains a rather tenuous argument as there is no direction correlation between God N, a mountain god, and the stellar, celestial Tzitzimime. The closest correspondence to the later Tzitzimime sky bearer may actually reside with Goddess O whose skeletal features and cross bones skirt are diagnostic of the Tzitzimime in Late Postclassic Central Mexico. Goddess O is skeletal and wears a skirt depicting cross bones and eyeballs. The skeletal aspects and the symbolism of her skirt make her a predecessor to a number of Central Mexican deities that appear in the Late Postclassic including Cihuacoatl, Tlaltecuhtli, and a broader category of spirit beings known as Cihuateteo and Tzitzimime (Miller 2005; Taube 1992). In the Classic period, Goddess O is an aged midwife who also wears a skirt of cross bones and eyeballs. The pairing of these two motifs likely derive from the symbolism of ch’een ‘cave’, and may refer to primordial darkness, birth, and creation (Coltman 2018). It is interesting that 55 one of these sky bearers would be a woman, a convention unusual in Late Postclassic Central Mexico but well know at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza. The most elaborate female atalantean appears in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where four skeletal representations of Goddess O support the emergence of the Maize God like her male counterpart, God N. Goddess O is a likely precursor to skeletal female deities known as Tzitzimime and Cihuateteo in Late Postclassic Central Mexico of which Ilamatecuhtli-Cihuacoatl. If Alvarado Tezozomoc is correct in that the Tzitzimime were “sustainers of the sky”, then the monumental group of “Coatlicue” sculptures were representative of that duty. For the people of Central Mexico and Yucatan, public office was a metaphoric concept for a burden that weighed heavy. In one account, Tezozomoc highlights the cosmic and political function of sky bearing and supporting the seat of high office: “As they were finishing a stone god, which they call Tzitzimime ylhuicatzitziquique angels of the air, sustainers of the sky. Another name which they give to these idols is Petlacotzitzquique, sustainers of the cane mat” (Thompson 1934: 228). Indeed, despite no firm relationship between God N and the Tzitzimime, both served as “sustainers of the sky” as well as “sustainers of the cane mat”. Conclusion The sacred geography and cosmology of Chichen Itza centered around water, ancestral couples, and those whose burden it was to sustain the heavenly vault. The water sources in and around Chichen Itza were key to the sites settlement and played active roles in religion and ideology. The Cenote Xtoloc, usually eclipsed by its well-known and larger neighbor, the Cenote Sagrado or Cenote of Sacrifice, was likely used for ritual as well. It 56 is a curious thing that many scholars separate them and their functions. The Sacred Cenote is thought to be where major ritual activity took place while the Cenote Xtoloc had a utilitarian function in being used for the city’s water supply. There is no evidence they did this. While many scholars see the important function of these cenotes as an either/or, it is far more likely that both were considered equally important and sacred to the ancient Maya of Chichen Itza. Continuing with the importance of water at the site, there was an extensive cave cult dedicated to the Central Mexican rain god, Tlaloc. While only two caves have been documented yielding Tlaloc incensarios of this magnitude, it would certainly not be surprising to find more. The sacbeob that seems to link these caves to the site show that these were not mere outliers on the periphery of Chichen Itza but were an active part of the site in terms of ritual procession. Like the Greek and Roman civilizations of the Old World with Atlas and Caryatides, the idea of these bearers of sky and earth were highly developed among ancient Mesoamerican people. J. Eric Thompson (1934: 238) notes that there is little direct evidence to suggest the skybearer complex was Maya in origin except for the example from the Tablet of the Sun at Palenque. For Thompson, citing the Greek Atlas as an example, the fact that sky bearers were present in ancient Mexican and Greek thought was a rare example of convergence. However, although the smaller size Atlantean appears at Tula, there is no earlier Central Mexican antecedent, not even at the great metropolis of Teotihuacan. Perhaps the point of origin for this cosmological concept rendered in stone should be revaluated. The Atlantean bearer, while clearly present with the earlier Olmec, was most highly developed among the Classic Maya and even more so among the Maya 57 inhabitants of Chichen Itza which firmly anchored the site in Maya cosmological principles extending far back into antiquity. As previously mentioned, the concept of the world bearer carried both cosmic and political connotations. Gods, rulers, and secondary nobles carried multiple burdens, be it supporting thrones, skies, or even time itself. Often taking the form of duck billed Ik’k’uh, aged, toothless, chapfallen grandfathers, or young able-bodied men, these individuals provided both a cosmic and political service. This clear metaphor bridges the gap between Maya political authority replicating cosmic realms of authority where wind gods, sky and world bearing Atlanteans, and year bearers subservient to sustaining the order of the cosmos just as they sustained the ruler. One of the roles taken on by the Old Man, God N, may have been to support the Maize God himself as the Maize God resurrects from the turtle carapace or mountain which God N symbolizes. 58 Chapter 3: The Sun God and Solar Symbolism of Chichen Itza The sun constitutes one of the most powerful symbols in human history with ancient civilizations venerating it as a sign of kingly authority, power, and life over millennia (Singh 1993). Like the Old World, the ancient civilizations of the New World were enamored by the sun with it figuring prominently in mythology, art, and religion. The varied civilizations making up the culturally unified area of Mesoamerica were particularly enamored by the sun. One of the more unique sites to take solar worship to new heights was Early Postclassic Chichen Itza, which has more known representations of the sun god in a single program than anywhere in all Mesoamerica, a fact which has surprisingly received very little attention. Closely related to kingly authority, the Chichen Itza sun god was perhaps the major deity venerated at the site. Such a significant feature has been largely overlooked by previous researchers. This chapter will discuss the sun god as a major catalyst in an ideology that was based upon this bright, shining, and resplendent orb. While firmly rooted in Classic Maya kingship and solar iconography, the sun god of Chichen Itza appeared as something new and was closely related to Terminal Classic sites such as Ceibal and Ek’ Balam. A lack of texts and a shift away from royal portraiture of the Classic period makes it hard to determine whether or not the kings of Chichen Itza identified with the sun god like many of their Classic Maya predecessors. What is clear is that the introduction and veneration of this new solar deity and his associated iconography would have a legacy extending centuries later, most obvious in Late Postclassic Central Mexico. 59 The Sun in Classic Highland Mexico The Classic period site of Teotihuacan in highland Mexico was known to the later Aztec as the place where the sun first came into being (Bierhorst 1992: 147), a startling statement since there is very little solar symbolism at the site to speak of. Recently, Nielsen and Helmke (2017: 78-80) have shown what may be a solar sign on a tri-pod vase from Teotihuacan (Fig.3.1a). I agree that this is a depiction of a Teotihuacan style sun.5 Furthermore, these authors argue that the toponym of Teotihuacan that was once written with a sun logogram as found in the Codex Xolotl and the mapas of the Relaciones Geograficas has the meaning “Where the sun came into being”, a fitting title for a place venerated by the later Aztec as the place where the gods immolated themselves in fire leading to the creation of the sun (Nielsen and Helmke 2017: 84-87). A painted vessel attributed to Teotihuacan in the collection of the Arizona State Museum depicts a probable solar disk as a name glyph, with four jades and a winged being who may be a Teotihuacan version of a Maya sun god (Taube 2015: 105-106, fig. 5.12b) (Fig.3.1b). Despite these few examples, as of yet, there has not been any monumental solar art found at the site nor a definitive sun god with origins at Teotihuacan. Solar deities of Maya origin may appear at Teotihuacan with attributes including a macaw costume and a stepped pattern on the face Paulinyi 1995; Taube 2006). Zoltan Paulinyi (1995: 89-92) noted that the stepped facial marking found on many figures on the theater censers may represent the Teotihuacan sun god. While Paulinyi saw these as Other examples of solar disks might be the shields surrounded by pointed rays that commonly appear with the lechuza y armas motif in Teotihuacan iconography (Nielsen and Helmke 2008: fig. 6a-d). 5 60 versions of the night sun, Taube (2006: 164) sees them as the diurnal sun who rises freshly awakened at dawn from the eastern Maya shores of the Caribbean. A number of Teotihuacan stucco painted vessels depict attributes of this young solar god including a vessel in Maya style from Otumba depicting a probable feathered Maya sun god emerging from the mouth of a plumed serpent (Taube 2005a, 2010b: 215-217). Other possible examples of this avian solar deity include a figure from Zone 5A at Teotihuacan (Paulinyi 1995: 89-92). An Early Classic vessel from Dumbarton Oaks depicts the avian solar deity with a butterfly proboscis, wings, and a quetzal head and body. Rather than quetzals, Taube (ibid.) notes that the eye and beak are more suggestive of the scarlet macaw, making a combination of this bird and the quetzal. The Teotihuacan figure with step facial painting frequently has quetzal bird attributes as well as those of the macaw which relate to the founder of the Copan dynasty, K’inich Yax K’uk’ Mo’, or “Sun-faced Green Quetzal Macaw”. As Taube (2006: 165) notes, K’inich Yax K’uk’ Mo’ may have embodied both Teotihuacan and Maya concepts of the sun. In Late Classic or Epi-classic Central Mexico, solar symbolism is even more obscure than at Teotihuacan. While we might expect to see such solar symbolism rendered in similar ways to that of Chichen Itza and Late Postclassic Central Mexico, it is possible that that these cultures are depicting solar symbolism in ways far less obvious than their neighbors to the east. In Late Classic Central Mexico, the Nevada de Toluca Stela depicts a feline individual with a probable solar disk (Alvarez A. 1983: 248) (Fig.3.1c). Two aspects of the sun may be present on Cacaxtla’s Structure A murals where Michel Graulich (1998, 2001) has made the argument that the two opposed figures represent two aspects of 61 the sun; the jaguar warrior representing the nocturnal sun and the eagle warrior being the diurnal sun, which is entirely consistent with Classic Maya conceptions of two opposing solar deities, one of the resplendent dawning east, the other of the dark nether regions of the west. The eagle and jaguar represent the Aztec military orders and it makes sense that the two would together represent the movement of the sun from its rise in the east to its setting in the west. Despite the rather thin data regarding solar symbolism in Classic Central Mexico, their neighbors to the east were all too familiar with it. The Sun God and Solar Symbolism of Chichen Itza In Classic period Mesoamerica, solar symbolism was most vividly expressed by the Maya. The Classic Maya had a profound interest of the sun, and equated it with kingship, flowers, and sacrifice and war. Often portrayed as the floral looking k’in sign, the solar motif usually decorated the forehead or body of the Maya sun god who was known as K’inich (Fig.3.2a). A major shift occurred in the Terminal Classic which lead to the new sun god of Chichen Itza who maintained a strong tie to kingship yet was completely distinct from the traditional Classic Maya sun god. This chapter will discuss the new sun god of Chichen Itza and the solar iconography surrounding him. If Teotihuacan was the place “Where the sun came into being” then Chichen Itza was the home of the sun god. In a panel in the center of the east wall in the mural paintings from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars, a now lost portion preserved through the artistic efforts of Adela Breton depicts two individuals facing one another (Fig.3.2b). Long ago, Seler (1961: V: 352) correctly noted that the figure on the left was “der sonnengot”, the sun god who 62 appears in solar disks from multiple examples around the site, standing opposite the great plumed serpent figure who is the embodiment of Venus as morning star. Attention to this same scene would come decades later in a study of the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars by Arthur Miller (1977) who would note stylistic differences between the two individuals pictured together and would refer to them respectively as “Captain Sun Disk” who battled this antagonist he called “Captain Feathered Serpent” who stood across from him. While Miller saw this relationship between these two beings as antagonistic because they frequently appeared in the same scenes together, there is little evidence to suggest there was an antagonistic relationship at all. Even Miller (1977:218-219) was forced to recognize this in this particular scene: Although Serpent and Sun Disk are shown as enemies in the pictorial narratives of the mural panels, the prominent depiction of both captains in the panel of the center of the east wall directly opposite the entrance suggests that both chiefs are honored in this chamber. Indeed, it is striking that both a solar and plumed serpent deity appear together in the center of the east wall directly across the entrance to the chamber as both of these are eastern beings and share an important relationship at this site in particular. As Seler (1990-96: VI: 119) noted, the solar deity and the feathered serpent “formed the center of the mythical beliefs of the temple builders”. To enter this chamber, one must walk directly under a wooden lintel made of chicozapote wood where there are three different scenes of the sun god in his solar disk sitting opposite the plumed serpent figure (Fig.3.3). In fact, the earliest pairing of the new sun god of Chichen Itza and the plumed serpent being appear at Chichen Itza. As will be shown in subsequent chapters, the sun god and 63 plumed serpent were bound by a cosmic relationship that involved heart sacrifice and the daily ascent of the dawning sun. In a number of studies, Karl Taube (1992b: 142; 1994: 224-225; 2015) has noted that the Late Postclassic Central Mexican sun god, Tonatiuh, derives from this Early Postclassic sun deity at Chichen Itza where he appears as a deified version of a Classic Maya king, wearing the “Jester God” jade brow ornament commonly worn by Maya rulers. However, this Early Postclassic solar deity should not be confused with the Classic Maya K’inich Ajaw as these are two distinct beings. A notable feature of the Chichen Itza sun god is his long yellow hair which probably represents the fiery nature of the solar deity (Seler 1963: 1: 151). The Chichen Itza sun god never appears in turquoise Toltec attire such as the butterfly chest pectoral or the tezcacuitlapilli, a solar mirror that adorns the lower backs of warriors at Chichen Itza and Tula. These items of turquoise seem to be associated exclusively with Central Mexico and the Toltec warrior (see Taube 2012). Instead, this solar deity appears adorned in jade jewelry with jade beads even decorating his long waist length yellow hair. 6 Long ago, Tozzer (1957: 120) noted that the sun god sitting on a jaguar throne inside a solar disk from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars wears insignia designating him as distinctively Maya. An image of this deity from the murals from the Temple of the Chacmool caused Ann Morris (1931: 444) to suggest this is what 6 The beaded yellow hair and jade finery are some of the more notable features of the sun god of Chichen Itza. The Lower Temple of the Jaguars depicts another likely portrayal of the sun god (Maudslay 1889-1902: III: Pl. 27) . While he doesn’t appear in a sun disk, he has the long blonde beaded hair and jade finery that are characteristic of this being. 64 the Maya individuals at Chichen looked like (Fig.3.4a). Furthermore, Taube (1994: 224) noted that this individual in the mural from the Temple of the Chacmool was the sun god, not only because of the jade jewelry and yellow hair, but because of a double eagle feather worn in the hair, an attribute also shared with the Late Postclassic Tonatiuh of Central Mexico (Fig.3.4b). It becomes clear that there are two distinct representations of the solar figure at Chichen Itza—one that depicts him wearing the Jester God brow piece on his headband as can be seen in representations from the murals and chicozapote lintel in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars and the other a double eagle feather headdress as can be seen from the Temple of the Chacmool mural, Temple of the Wall panels, and north wall of the North Temple Ballcourt. These are both the sun god of Chichen Itza with only minor differences in headdress attire. Most representations of the sun god at Chichen Itza show him as an armed being ready for war. The Classic Maya sun god is a celestial warlike being whose weapon of choice is a centipede lance (Taube 2015: fig. 5.10c). In the Late Classic, the sun god holds his centipede lance while sitting on an eagle sky band throne (Taube 2009: fig. 16c). In ancient Mesoamerica, eagles were a symbol of the sun and valiant warriors. A wooden spear thrower in the Dumbarton Oaks collection depicts Tonatiuh, the Late Postclassic central Mexican sun god wearing an eagle headdress as he descends from his solar disk (Urcid 2010: fig. 73). A stamped and excised Maya ceramic vessel depicts the probable sun god addressing four individuals wearing eagle headdresses who may be solar warriors (Houston 2016: 74-75). A stela with a jaguar head on top appears directly behind the sun god and the extended meaning may relate to sacrifice. A number of Late Classic vase 65 scenes depict the jaguar sitting on or near stela as human sacrifices take place on the stone altars set before them (see K 718, 928, 8351). Interestingly, by the time of Chichen Itza, the solar deity no longer wields his centipede lance as the Classic Maya solar deity frequently does, but instead holds his spear-thrower and darts like a Toltec warrior. So, who was this new sun god and where did he come from? Was he a local representation or was he part of more ancient traditions rooted in ancient Maya visual culture and religion? The important Late Classic site of Ek’ Balam, roughly 75 km northeast of Chichen Itza, may have been one possible point of origin for the solar deity of Chichen Itza. On Stela 1 from Ek’Balam, the deceased ruler Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ is seated as a sun god grasping his lance and shield within a solar disk with four radiating centipede heads (Fig.3.5). Taube (2015: 109) notes: “Given the historic and political significance of Ek’ Balam at the end of the Classic period, the apotheosized Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ may have been adopted as the regal Maya sun god during the Early Postclassic”. Another possibility comes from Terminal Classic Ceibal where a number of pabellon ceramics are strikingly similar to artistic themes found in Early Postclassic art from Chichen Itza and Tula. A pabellon ceramic bowl excavated from Burial 108 at Ciebal depicts two representations of the youthful sun god who is certainly related to the solar deity of Chichen Itza (Fig.3.6a-b). 7 The element appearing before his face is strikingly similar to representations of the sun deity known for both Ek’ Balam and Chichen Itza (Fig.3.7a-d). 7 A Fine orange bowl attributed to the Peten in the Boston Museum of Fine Art (accession #1988.1271) depicts an almost identical scene of the sun gods from the Ceibal vessel. 66 At Chichen Itza, the sun god frequently has elaborate serpent breath emanations before his face (Fig.3.7c-d). In the first scene of the roll out, he holds a bundle of quetzal plumes while the other side of the roll out shows the sun deity possibly offering jade. Karl Taube (pers. comm. 2019) has brought to my attention another possible scene of the Terminal Classic sun god on a pabellon vase (Fig.3.8a-b). Here the sun god is given his spear thrower and jade from two K’awiil figures. K’awiil was a god of abundance and is frequently depicted at Chichen Itza as a bringer of jade. Thompson (1970: 289) noted that K’awiil signified “surplus of our daily bread”. Both quetzal plumes and jade are objects associated with the eastern land of the dawning sun and the home of the Maya (Taube 1994). A Late Classic Ñuiñe tomb mural from Ixcaquixtla, Puebla depicts a probable solar deity in a rhomboid with rays and flames (Fig.3.9). The rays are pointed very much like the solar rays depicted on solar disks from Chichen Itza. Appearing next to the sun god is an offering of jade earspools and a jade necklace which indicates the sun god’s role as a bringer of wealth from the east (Karl Taube, pers. comm. 2018). Most depictions of the solar deity at Chichen Itza show him sitting in his solar disk, a convention that would be strongly reinforced in Late Postclassic Central Mexico. Such scenes occur on the Lower Temple of the Jaguars, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars, and Temple of the Wall Panels (Fig. 3.10a-d). An unusual but important image of the solar deity within a sun disk was unfortunately placed upside down and today is unseen and unnoticed at Hacienda Chichen Itza (Fig. 3.10c). The sun deity sitting within his solar disk constitutes one of the most striking representations of continuity among solar deities. While the sun god sitting in his solar disk occurs at Ek’ Balam with Ukit K’an Leek 67 Tok’ and at Chichen Itza itself, this convention can be found among the earlier Classic Maya. A striking example occurs on Structure N5-21 from Dos Pilas which revealed the side of a sculpted bench throne depicting the sun god, K’inich Ajaw, whose body is marked by Kin signs and who sits in a large solar cartouche with radiating skeletal centipede heads emerging from the corners (Chinchilla 1990; Stuart 2009) (Fig. 3.11a). This throne was originally supported by two duck-billed atlantean Ik’ K’uh ‘wind gods’ who bore the weight of the sun on their backs. The solar disk or cartouche was a common motif in Classic Maya art and many examples appear with individuals inside them, along with many portrayals of the sun god himself (Fig. 3.11a-d). Yaxchilan Stela 3 depicts an individual within a solar disk with characteristic skeletal centipede heads (Taube 2004a: 80) (Fig. 3.11c). An unprovenienced stone fragment depicts an armed solar deity within his disk depicting the four centipede heads known from other Classic Maya examples ( see Mayer 1987: plate 102) (Fig. 3.11d). Royal elites and the sun god sitting within the solar disk likely grew out of earlier representations from the Classic Maya. The solar disk for the Classic Maya was depicted as a mirror which frequently had a k’in sign in the center (3.12a-d). As Martin (2005: 158) notes, many solar disks or cartouches are elaborated glyphs for yaxk’in ‘first sun’. Thompson (1950: 110) notes that the month yaxk’in refers to the dawning sun: the name more probably refers to the morning sun who, refreshed by the sacrifices offered him, sheds the symbols acquired during his nightly journey through the underworld to appear in all his vigor. 68 Yax markings often occur on solar disks marking them as yaxk’in (Houston et al. 2009: 40) (Fig.3.12d). Another common convention of Maya solar disks is that they are frequently rimmed with skeletal centipede heads (Grube and Nahm 1994: 702). However, there seems to have been some changes in how these were represented over time. As Taube (2003b: 411) notes, “Whereas Early Classic centipedes tend to have sharply down curving, hook shaped snouts, the Late Classic forms are often straight with bifurcated fangs at the tip”. For example, the down curving and hook shaped snouts can be seen on the solar disk from Tikal Stela 1, while the solar disk from Piedras Negras Stela 9 depict the bifurcated fangs (Fig.3.12a-b). Indeed, this convention of solar mirrors or disks in Classic Maya art marked by skeletal centipede heads radiating from the four corners is a common theme that underscores the close relationship between centipedes and the sun. In a personal communication to Karl Taube (1996), Nikolai Grube mentioned that according to the field notes of Alfonso Villa Rojas, the Yucatec Maya of the village of Chan K’om believe that in September, the solar rays of the sun turn into centipedes. Taube (2003b: 413) notes that the centipede rays on solar disks and centipede headdress of the sun god may allude “to the eastern sun freshly rising out of the deathly underworld”. Taube’s statement is well taken, as the yaxk’in rises daily “fresh” or “new” from the underworld (Thompson 1950: 110). In fact, the young sun god of Chichen Itza may be the embodiment of yaxk’in, as a fresh and new solar deity. While skeletal centipede heads radiating from solar disks is a common convention in the Classic period, these do not appear on the solar disks known for Early Postclassic Chichen Itza. However, in one example of a solar disk from the murals in the Upper Temple 69 of the Jaguars, there are four fret nosed solar breath serpent heads radiating from the solar disk (Fig.3.13a). This being occurs much earlier on Classic Maya solar disks from Yaxchilan and Palenque (Fig.3.13b-c). Taube (2005b: 37) notes that the fret-nosed serpent “probably denotes warm, living breath”. The fret-nosed solar breath element occurs on Late Classic Piedras Negras Stela 40, where the deceased ancestor exhales a serpent chord that terminates into the step fret nosed serpent (Stone and Zender 2011: 227). This motif also frequently appears as the solar breath of the sun god (Fig. 3.14a-e). On Hieroglyphic Stairway 3 from Yaxchilan, the sun god appears wearing the centipede headdress and exhales the fret-nosed solar breath element (Taube 2003b: 411, fig. 3b) (Fig. 3.14e). On Tikal Stela 31, Nun Yax Ayiin exhales the fret-nosed serpent (Fig.3.14c). Quirigua Stela D also depicts the sun god exhaling the fret-nosed serpent (Taube 2005b: 38). The fret nosed solar breath serpent element appears at least twice in front of the face of the sun god at Chichen Itza. One example comes from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where a large fret-nosed solar breath serpent appears before the face of the sun god (Fig. 3.10a). This serpent is almost identical to the ones radiating from the solar disk in the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Fig. 3.13a) The fret-nosed solar breath serpent also appears in front of the face of the sun god on the North wall of the Great Ballcourt (Fig.3.14a). As previously mentioned, there are two Classic examples of step-fret serpents radiating from solar disks like the one known for Chichen Itza. On Yaxchilan Stela 4, a fret-nosed serpent can be seen on the corner of the solar disk (Fig.3.13b). This stela is damaged but there would have originally been four like the solar disk from Chichen Itza. The wall of the west court of the palace at Palenque would also have had a gallery of solar 70 cartouches. The best preserved suggests that the sun god was flanked by two individuals, probably ancestors (Robertson 1985: fig. 358) (Fig. 13c). Attached quetzal birds suggest that this was a solar paradise (Taube 2004a: 79). As Chinchilla (2005: 50) notes, instead of the usual centipede heads on the solar disk, it is the fret nosed serpent, the solar breath of the sun that appears on the Upper Temple of the Jaguars at Chichen Itza. It is probable that the skeletal centipede rays and fret-nosed serpent were interchangeable motifs in depicting the fiery rays of the sun. Aside from representing the fiery solar rays of the sun, the fretnosed solar breath serpent emanating from solar disks may also relate to the solar breath of flowers. Lintels 24 and 25 from Yaxchilan depict Lady Xook wearing an earring that has the fret-nosed solar breath serpent emerging from a floral earspool (Fig.3.14f). This same being emerges from a flower on the headdress of Itzamnaaj (Stone and Zender 2011: 227) (Fig.3.14g) Large step-fret solar breath serpents emerge from flowers on the panel from the Temple of the Cross at Palenque (Fig.3.14h). Such conventions of the solar breath serpent emerging from flowers and solar disks may relate to the relationship between the sun and flowers with the sun representing one giant solar flower. According to David Stuart (2005: 23), the fret nosed serpent represents solar heat and is a precursor to the Late Postclassic Central Mexican Xiuhcoatl. There is evidence to suggest that the Xiuhcoatl known for Late Postclassic Central Mexico was present at Chichen Itza. Taube (2012: 128) notes a couple examples of the Xiuhcoatl at Chichen Itza. In one instance, it appears as a glyph from the Northwest Colonnade (Fig.3.15a). With upturned snout, forearms, and flames emanating from its body, there is little doubt that this represents this meteoric grub-like creature. The other example is a wooden sculpture from 71 the Cenote of Sacrifice which depicts stars on its curving up-turned snout (Fig.3.15b). Other examples of the early Xiuhcoatl appear as the step-fret solar breath serpent as noted on the turquoise tezcacuitlapilli and solar disk from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Fig. 3.15c-d). As these examples show, there appears to be two forms of the Xiuhcoatl at Chichen Itza, one with the up turned curving snout, the other the fret-nosed serpent, both of which are also found in the Late Postclassic period. One of the closest examples to the fret-nosed serpents on the disk from Chichen Itza can be found in Late Postclassic Central Mexico at Tenayuca where the terminating end of the Xiuhcoatl snout terminates into a step fret (Fig. 3.15e). Examples of Yahui, the Mixtec equivalent of the Xiuhcoatl, appears with the sharp step fret snout as can be seen on Codex Nuttall p. 46 and on the Fons Mexicains 20 deer hide painting (Fig. 3.15f). As a name glyph in the colonial Codex Azcatitlan and Cozcatzin, the fret-nosed serpent appears to retain its role as an exhalation of heated solar breath, much like it was for the Classic Maya (Fig. 3.15g-h). These solar breath elements are spiked, as are the bodies of the Xiuhcoatl. This may recall the spiky Rainbow Serpent in the murals from the Temple of the Chacmool which has recently been identified as a Xiuhcoatl (Brittenham 2019). Much like there were differences in depicting the rays on Classic Maya solar disks, there also appears to be two conventions for depicting Xiuhcoatl, one which is an upward curving snout, the other a clear step-fret. Both examples occur at Chichen Itza and in later Late Postclassic Central Mexico. A major theme regarding the sun god and the solar paradise of Chichen Itza can be found on the upper registers from the four-sided carved columns of the Temple of the 72 Warriors (Fig. 3.16). This is a major corpus of sun god imagery where there are more concentrated examples of this being in one program than in all of Mesoamerica. In these examples, the deity descends from a solar disk marked by pointed solar rays. In these scenes, he is armed with his spear thrower, darts, and curved club (Fig. 3.17). The sun god is the warrior par excellence and he consistently appears armed with his darts and spear thrower. Centuries later, in cognate scenes from the Codex Borgia, Vaticanus B, and Cospi, the sun god Tonatiuh descends from a solar orb recalling these exact scenes from the upper registers of the Temple of the Warriors (Fig.3.18a-c). Furthermore, his descent from a solar orb armed with weapons is characteristic of the Late Postclassic, where stellar deities frequently descend from sun disks and sky bands (see Codex Borgia pp. 49-53; Codex Nuttall 4r, 21r; Codex Selden p.1). The elements appearing with the descending sun gods from the Temple of the Warriors depict a rain of flowers, jewels, and flames, all elements denoting the eastern paradise which is the house of the sun. The solar paradise in later Aztec thought, was in the east and known as Ichan Tonatiuh Ilhuicac, ‘House of the Sun’, where the souls of fallen warriors sipped nectar from flowers in a paradisiacal realm of beauty (Sahagún 1950-82: VI: 162). The celestial solar paradise of Aztec warriors was in the east: “the brave warriors, the eagle-ocelot warriors, those who died in war, went there to the house of the sun. And they lived there in the east, where the sun arose” (Sahagún 1950-82, bk. 6: 162). Kingship, Impersonation and Apotheosis There is a long trend throughout human history for kings and rulers to align themselves with the sun. In ancient Egypt, rulers cast themselves in the image of the sun, 73 Ra. In addition, the Aten as sun was a major component of religion and royal ideology. Amenhotep IV clearly set out to elevate the cult of the sun god to new heights and would change his name to Akhenaten (The Efficient One for/on behalf of the Aten) and distance himself from Thebes to found a new capitol (Janak and Coppens 2017). Alexander the Great proclaimed himself “the sun of the Sun-god Amon” upon conquering Egypt (Singh 1993: 65). The ‘Sun King’, King Louis XIV, identified himself with Apollo, dancing in full solar regalia at Versailles during the Le Ballet royal de la nuit (Singh 1993: Fig. 444). In smaller scale societies, the sun was equally venerated and equated with kingship. Ethnohistorical documents from Nayarit describe a Cora lineage of “Sun Kings” that are rulers identified as personified sun gods (Mathiowetz 2019). The skull of the last Cora “Sun King” is still revered in a mission church at the Mesa del Nayar (Warner 1998: 4; Mathiowetz 2019). As Houston and Cummins (2004: 365) note for the Maya, “The sun was not so much a royal metaphor, as in seventeenth-century France, but the primordial ruler himself…”. The solar deity, K’inich was frequently impersonated by Classic Maya rulers with K’inich (‘Sun-faced’) occurring frequently in the name of Maya kings (Houston and Stuart 1996: 295). One such aspect of the sun god, Uhuk Chapaht Tz’ikiin K’inich Ajaw, was frequently impersonated (Nehammer Knub et al. 2009 :189) (Fig. 3.19a) Simon Martin (2005: 6) notes the appearance of the name 7-CHAPAT-TZ IKIN “Seven Centipede Eagle” is attached to k’inich ajaw making a complete unit that names a particular solar god and perhaps the name of the deified founder of Tikal. Given the close relationship between centipedes and the sun, it is probably no accident that Uhuk Chapaht Tz’’ikiin K’inich 74 Ajaw “Seventh Centipede Eagle Sun-faced Lord” has centipede ‘chapaht’ as part of his name. The Early Classic founder of the Copan dynasty, K’inich Yax K’uk’ Mo’ or “Sunfaced First (or Green) Quetzal Macaw” was apotheosized as the sun god and was depicted within the solar disk or shield with radiating centipede heads from Structure 10L-16 (Taube 2004b) (Fig. 3.19b). Stela A from Copan depicts the ruler wearing the ribbed royal headdress typical of the sun god with radiating centipede heads (Fig. 3.19c). He holds a ceremonial bar with each end representing skeletal centipede heads from which emerges the k’in marked sun god. The remarkable Laxtunich panel depicts a bearded ruler impersonating the sun god and wearing his characteristic ribbed centipede headdress (Houston 2021) (Fig. 3.19d). The sun god often serves as part of royal regalia. At Palenque, the sun god appears as the focal point of a headdress attached to the end of a skyband on a figure depicted in House A, Pier D (Robertson 1985: fig. 77). Another ruler wears a similar sun god with fretnosed solar breath element on the headdress on House A, Pier C (Robertson 1985: fig. 111). The ruler, Bird Jaguar IV, depicted on Yaxchilan Stela 9 is dressed as the sun god (Fig.3 .20a) In Chancala near Palenque, a figure is epigraphically labeled as “Lord of the Sun” and is dressed as the sun god wearing the centipede headdress and is armed with a lance and shield (Grube and Bernal 2007) (Fig. 3.20b). K’in signs mark his body and he has the fret-nosed serpent solar breath motif before his face. Nuun Yax Ayiin is depicted on Tikal stela 31 as the apotheosized sun deity with the fret-nosed serpent breath element emerging from his face (Fig.3.14c). 75 Rulers from around the world identified themselves with the sun as a way of legitimizing power and authority and this was often done through incorporating the name of the sun god into their personal names (Colas 2003). For instance, in Egyptian onomastics, a close relationship is found between kings and the sun god through the use of the name of the sun god in order to legitimize their power (Kemp 1982: 658-659). In an excellent comparative study, Robert Colas (2003) has shown how the ancient Maya use of the name K’inich ‘sun god’ played an important role in legitimizing royal authority much like it did in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Colas (2003: 281) notes that the… “prefixed name of the sun god K’inich reflects an association of divine kingship with the sun. The postfixed K’inich refers rigidly to the king’s self. The name of the sun god in both cultures thus was used to legitimize divine kingship and enhance kingly power”. Among the ancient Nahua, rulers discharged the “soul force” or tonalli which was etymologically linked to “warmth of the sun” (Karttunen 1983: 245-246). Interestingly, in Colonial Tzotzil, “majesty” and “tyrant” are equated to the “hot breath, air or wind” (k’ak’alik’) that emanates from a king (Laughlin 1988: 2: 558; Houston and Cummins 2004: 365). The ruler was connected to the sun’s presence thus the “…entire authority of the sun god thus legitimized the person of a king—his rulership, sacredness, and divine status” (Colas 2003: 280). According to Baudez and Latsanopoulos (2010), Chichen Itza had a paramount king who identified himself with the sun. They suggest that the images of this solar deity at Chichen Itza may in fact be images of a living king. Indeed, Chichen Itza marks a liminal period between the fall of a Classic Maya system where kings were aggrandized in stone 76 monuments and the Postclassic where royal portraiture is a mere relic of an ancient past. As Schele and Freidel (1990: 393) note, “The Classic Maya view of a world without kings was of a world beyond the pale, a barbarian place without true order”. However, we know that among the Classic Maya, kingship was closely related to the sun god and that this new solar deity at Chichen, while appearing as something new, has roots extending back to Classic Maya conceptions of kingship and solar iconography (Schele and Freidel 1990: 393; Taube 1994: 233-234). As Houston and Stuart (1996: 296) note, Maya kings are never said to be actual gods and the fusion between gods and rulers is much clearer with deceased rulers who become venerated as sacred ancestors such as Nuun Yax Ayiin of Tikal, Yax K’uk’ Mo’ of Copan, and Ukit K’an Leek Tok of Ek’ Balam, all of whom are apotheosized as sun gods. As Chinchilla (2005: 49) notes, “Male royal ancestors depicted in solar cartouches occupy the position of the sun god himself, his glorious seat and residence”. A remarkable frieze from Holmul depicts three animate mountains with two large plumed serpents exhaled from the central mountain (Estrada-Belli and Tokovinine 2016). These plumed serpents represent the breath of the mountain much like the cave scene from the North wall at San Bartolo (Saturno et al. 2005: 7-25, fig. 5). The figure seated on this central mountain from which the plumed serpents emerge is dressed in the attire typical of the Classic Maya sun god and this figure may be an apotheosized royal ancestor as the sun god (Estrada-Belli and Tokovinine 2016: 154). As Schele and Freidel (1990: 393) make very clear, kingship was associated with the sun at Chichen Itza: They transformed kingship into an abstraction, vested in objects, images, and places, rather than in the individual identity and written words of a person. Their principal image of kingship was not the living king, but a dead king sitting in the sun disk, an icon that had developed from the Classic 77 period ancestor cartouche. Captain Sun Disk may or may not have been an actual person, but his identity as an individual was not the critical message. The function of this imagery was to symbolize the idea of an ancestral king presiding as a spirit over the realm of Chichen Itza. Another telling visual trope of the sun god’s relationship to kingship is seen on the image of the sun god from the Hacienda at Chichen Itza (Fig. 3.10c). Lincoln (1990: 174) noted the striking similarity this image had to Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ on Stela 1 from Ek’Balam, noting the similarity of the posture of the right leg. This particular seated position was one associated with kingship and royal authority. A figurine from Jaina shows the Jaguar God of the Underworld, a nocturnal aspect of the sun, riding a crocodile (Houston and Finamore 2010: cat. 96). The Jaguar God of the Underworld sits in a position with his left leg under his right, a position Anne Louise Schaffer (1991: 212-213) has referred to as a “posture of royal ease” like a ruler sits upon a throne. As Taube (2010a:281) notes, the Late Classic Maya sun god frequently appears in the same position atop his skyband throne with this particular image of the Jaguar God of the Underworld depicting the earth-crocodile as the throne and transportation of the night sun. According to Schaffer (1991: 203, 2014), the “posture of royal ease” is not only rare but is restricted to a certain group of individuals, noting it also at Chichen Itza in a lintel over the doorway of the Akabzib. As previously mentioned, the sun god from the Hacienda sits in the same “posture of royal ease” as Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ on Stela 1 from Ek’Balam where he takes his royal seat as the apotheosized sun god. Most representations of the sun god at Chichen Itza depict him on a jaguar throne, a symbol of rulership and kingly authority among the Maya (Fig.3.21a-c). This was hardly 78 a new idea at Chichen. A Late Classic vase depicts the sun god sitting on a jaguar cushion throne (see K1398). The image of the sun god could also be embodied by the solar mirror as a sign of kingship (Schele and Freidel 1990: 393-394). Significantly, a turquoise solar disk known as tezcacuitlapilli was found on the back of the jaguar throne in the Castillosub which may be a metaphorical representation of the sun taking his seat on the regal throne (Fig.3.21d). In the Late Postclassic Codex Nuttall, the Mixtec version of Tonatiuh, 1 Death, sits on a jaguar throne one example resting on a mat, making a double allusion to kingship (Fig.3.21e-f). Solar Symbolism at Early Postclassic Tula The lack of solar imagery at Tula suggests Chichen Itza was the major source of solar ideology entering into Central Mexico (Matos and Solís 2004: 87-88). There are not many known representations of the sun god at Tula but in those rare instances where we can identify him, he appears paired with the plumed serpent figure like they frequently do at Chichen Itza. This pairing occurs on a rock painting from Ixtapantongo near Tula, in Estado de Mexico (Taube 1992b: 136-137; Villagra Caleti 1954) (Fig.3.22a). Here the sun god stands within a solar disk in a style very similar to Tonatiuh in the Codex Borgia where the upper part of their body appears to be emerging out of or through the solar disk (Fig.3.22b). A vase in the onsite museum at Tula depicts a pairing of the Maya sun god and the plumed serpent figure, Quetzalcoatl, recalling the pairing of these two from the Ixtapantongo rock painting in the Estado de Mexico (Fig. 3.22c). Bey and Ringle (2007: 312) note that this “Maya-style polychrome vase” was recovered from the Palacio Charnay at Tula. This vase depicts the Maya solar lord sitting in his jade temple opposite a plumed 79 serpent figure while the scene below depicts an individual wearing the same mask as that found in the Sacred Cenote of Chichen Itza, in other words, a probable representation of the primary plumed serpent figure (Taube 1994: 223). A vase from the Bilimek collection in Vienna is depicted in typical X Fine Orange style and may have even served as a protype for imitations recovered from excavations at the Templo Mayor (Nicholson and Keber 1983: 95) (Fig.3.23a). The upper part of the vase depicts two individuals facing each other. One figure rides an undulating plumed serpent and is dressed in typical Toltec warrior attire including the solar back mirror known as tezcacuitlapilli. The other individual is only shown from the torso up (Fig.3.23b). The plumed serpent circles around him, much as if it was forming a solar disk, a convention strikingly similar to the sun god and plumed serpent pairing depicted on the North wall of the Great Ballcourt at Chichen Itza (Fig.3.23c). Upon closer examination, though not well drawn in Tozzer (1957: Fig.273), he has a pair of large eagle plumes in his headdress. As Taube (1994: 224-225) notes, this is also a distinguishing trait of the Chichen Itza solar deity, as he appears with this double eagle plume headdress on a fragment of the murals from the Temple of the Chac Mool (Morris et al. 1931: vol. II: pl. 142c). The Vienna vase depicts yet another pairing of the Chichen Itza sun god and plumed serpent. While the Early Postclassic solar deity appears in the Toltec-style rock painting of Ixtapantongo, and on two Toltec vases, he has yet to make another appearance in the Toltec heartland or anywhere else in Central Mexico at this time. One of the only references to a solar disk at Tula is in a single fragment found in the 19th century (Fig. 3.24a). As Matos and Solís (2005: 87) note, this fragment cannot be securely placed within the Early 80 Postclassic. In fact, this fragment corresponds more to the Late Postclassic examples where the bottom part of the pointed rays of the disk curve upward. If compared to the disk from the Ixtapontongo rock painting which dates to the Early Postclassic, the bottom of the rays do not curve up but are pointed straight like the examples known from Chichen Itza (Fig. 3.24b-c). Ruben Morante Lopez (2005: 98) identified some Late Classic examples of solar signs in the murals of Las Higueras, Veracruz which depict outward curving basal elements from the rays of the solar disks, a convention common in Late Postclassic solar rays but not in the Early Postclassic art of Chichen Itza (Andrews 1943: 75-76) (Fig.3.24d). In a study of Tonatiuh iconography in Central Mexican codices, Aztec scholar Henry B. Nicholson (2000b: 63) notes that solar symbolism in Central Mexico can only clearly be traced back to the Early Postclassic period in the rock painting of Ixtapantongo, in the southern Basin of Toluca. As previously mentioned, an image of the Early Postclassic solar deity appears within a large solar orb on this rock painting. While Nicholson notes that these disks appear at Chichen Itza, he makes no mention that they have Classic Maya origins. However, he does note that the rayed solar disk depicted at Ixtapantongo served as a prototype for the solar disks of the Late Postclassic MixtecaPuebla artistic tradition (ibid.). These rays do not appear in the Early Postclassic art of Chichen Itza (Andrews 1943: 75-76). As Taube (2015: 103) notes, the Late Postclasssic solar ray may derive from Early Classic dart points from Teotihuacan which are portrayed the same way. Late Classic solar rays from Las Higueras, Veracruz, are very similar to the Teotihuacan dart points. The solar ray with the edges upturned would not only be prominent in Late Postclassic Central Mexico but would come to characterize the Late 81 Postclassic International Style. A Late Postclassic censer fragment from a cave at Tancah shows a partial solar ray in this style (Miller 1982: fig. 111) (Fig.3.24e). Another solar ray from a censer found at Isla Cilvituk A depicts a fine example of this solar ray which Andrew IV (1943: 74, fig. 28g) noted was similar to Mixtec examples and the Santa Rita murals (see Gann 1901: Pl. XXIX). In fact, most solar disks known for Late Postclassic Central Mexico, including the Aztec Calendar Stone, portray both solar rays which means there may have been blending of both forms known from Early Classic Teotihuacan and Early Postclassic Yucatan (Fig.3.24f). Solar Symbolism in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico It has been argued that the solar disks at Chichen Itza have origins among the Classic Maya. In fact, Tozzer (1957: II: fig. 267-269) must have been well aware of the connections between Classic Maya and Early Postclassic solar disks of Chichen Itza since he illustrated them together. Solar symbolism would continue to develop in unique and interesting ways as the transition from the Early to the Late Postclassic took place. The Late Postclassic Codex Paris p. 21 depicts what is probably the last representation of a solar disk with four serpent or centipede heads emerging from it (Fig.3.25a). The fact that they are using these stylized centipede heads as solar rays is interesting since this convention does not appear at Mayapan or even earlier Chichen Itza. Another interesting convention continuing into Late Postclassic Yucatan is the curved fret-nosed element representing solar breath. This occurs in a representation of the sun god in the Codex Dresden (Fig.3.25b). The same solar breath convention appears in a representation of an 82 individual on Stela 5 from Mayapan (Fig.3.25c). At Late Postclassic Mayapan, there are eight scenes depicting a descending sun god in a solar disk (Fig.3.25d). Milbrath and Peraza Lope (2003: 28) suggested the close links between these solar disks and those in Aztec art, particularly as “Aztec images of deceased warriors serving as companions of the sun”. Rather than any Central Mexican influence coming through the Late Postclassic International Style, these images are simply Late Postclassic representations of the Solar deity emerging through his solar disk much like the upper registers from the Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza and what would be seen with the descending Tonatiuh in the Borgia Group of codices. In Late Postclassic Maya art, the sun deity is frequently portrayed as a god of war. Landa (Tozzer 1941: 144) noted that during the celebrations of the Muluc New Year, war dances were performed in honor of the sun god K’inich Ajaw. The wooden handle of a sacrificial knife depicts a fanged and bearded descending sun god (Couch 1988: no. 54) recalling his descent from the Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza, Mayapan, and the Borgia Group. A Late Postclassic mural from Xelha depicts the bearded sun god with a shield and lance (Taube 2010b: 162, fig. 13A). A disk of gilded copper found in the Sacred Cenote depicts an individual in the Late Postclassic style of the murals from Santa Rita Corozal (Lothrop 1952: fig. 60) (Fig.3.26). One of the distinguishing features of this individual is a serpent that emerges from a large ear spool, a characteristic that goes back to the Classic Maya and relates to the serpent as the precious breath of the jade object (Taube 2005b) (Fig.3.27a). While Coggins and Shane (1984: 120) argue that this represents the merchant deity Ek Chuah and even go so far as 83 to mention examples of this deity in the Codex Madrid, the two do not easily equate. One of the key characteristics of the Late Postclassic Ek Chuah is a large bulbous nose, an attribute clearly seen in the Codex Madrid. In fact, a copper bell found in the Sacred Cenote is a more logical representation of Ek Chuah than the figure depicted on the copper disk (Coggins and Shane 1984: fig. 139). This figure is most likely a portrayal of the Late Postclassic bearded Maya sun god. The severed head of the bearded and fanged sun god appears on the west wall mural at Santa Rita, Belize, (Gann 1900: plate 31) (Fig.3.27b). As Taube (2010b: 162) notes, the Late Postclassic sun god is characterized by a beard and fangs much like his appearance on the wooden knife handle mentioned above. In fact, that this disk was found in the Sacred Cenote would be logical in that the Sacred Cenote is the origin point for the daily rebirth of the sun. This copper disk depicting the Late Postclassic bearded Maya sun god was thus offered to the symbolic eastern sea. The sun god depicted on the copper disk wears a quetzal headdress, an item also known from a representation of a bearded and fanged sun god from Mayapan (Smith 1971: 50: fig. 32e) (Fig.3.27c). The young Tonatiuh on Codex Fejervery-Mayer p. 33 also wears a quetzal headdress as he stands before his eastern jade temple (Seler 1901-1902: 173) (Fig.3.27d). It is clear that many examples of the Late Postclassic bearded Maya sun god have been mis-identified as the merchant deity, Ek Chuah. In the codices and on the Santa Rita mural, Ek Chuah appears with a large comical bulbous nose, an attribute clearly lacking in these other examples. There are multiple examples of sun disks depicted in the Late Postclassic International style murals of Santa Rita Corozal, Belize. One image depicts a square solar 84 disk with the four-pointed rays radiating from the sides much like earlier Classic Maya examples of solar disks with centipede or serpent heads (Fig. 3.28a). Another solar disk has a plumed serpent passing through the center, an allusion to both the sun as a portal and the plumed serpent providing a celestial path or road for the sun (Fig.3.28b). In another representation at Santa Rita, the solar disk emanates from a drum whose flowery sound rises up to the solar disk (Fig. 3.28c). This scene likely depicts the journey of sound in the solar paradise. The Late Postclassic examples from Santa Rita Corazal all depict the sun disk as something that can be passed through. A clay Aztec drum in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, depicts a solar disk on both sides with a hole directly in the center of the solar disk (Fig.3.29a). This hole would not only be a portal for the sound of the drum but would also serve as a portal to access the supernatural world that is the floral solar paradise. An interesting feature of the solar disk on this drum, is that it is surrounded by quetzal plumes. These quetzal plumes appearing with solar disks mark these as an eastern region, the land of the Maya, and the land of the dawning sun. The bands on both sides of the solar drum depict flying figures in paradise. These figures are probable representations of Xochipilli, the Aztec god of music, pleasure, and flowers. A Late Postclassic stone from Tecomaxtlahuaca portrays two personified solar disks with two similar figures emerging from behind the sun with their arms passing through holes at the center of the disk (Fig.3.29b). These figures also appear as ancestors or souls of heroic warriors in paradise. An interesting convention is their arms passing directly through the solar disk. In fact, in the Ixtapantongo painting, the sun god appears standing through the solar disk as if the disk is placed directly over him. Such scenes are not known at Chichen where the sun god 85 usually appears sitting within the solar disk. The Ixtapantongo scene is more similar and the likely predecessor to Late Postclassic representations of Tonatiuh where the sun disk is almost worn as an object from which his head and upper body emerge through the hole. As has been mentioned repeatedly, the two Mesoamerican cultural areas sharing the largest amount of solar symbolism is that of Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Late Postclassic Central Mexico. While some scholars have viewed the partial solar disk from the upper registers of the Temple of the Warriors as Central Mexican (López Austin and López Luján 2000: 55-56), others see this solar symbolism as unique to Chichen Itza. In a magnificent study of Central Mexican solar disks, Matos and Solís (2005: 88) note that the solar disk was introduced into the Toltec area from Chichen Itza: “It was later adopted by the Mexica, who took the ritual to its utmost expression, without straying from the basic design of reproducing the warrior deity onto a shimmering disk, complete with rays and thorns”. While it is tempting to view the solar cult as originating from Chichen Itza (Matos and Solís 2004: 85-87), it is more likely that Chichen Itza inherited much of this ideology from the earlier Classic Maya. 8 The major sun god for Late Postclassic Central Mexico was Tonatiuh whose name can be translated as “he goes shining and shedding warmth” (Burkhart 1988: 238). In the Borgia Group, he is frequently depicted red which relates to the word tlapalli as well as to his heated and fiery solar substance: 8 Elizabeth Brumfiel (2007) has argued that spindle whorls from Xaltocan may have been inspiration for the monumental solar art of the Aztec Empire. I find this scenario unlikely given the strong evidence of the solar cult being of Maya origin. 86 And when the sun came to rise, when he burst forth, he appeared to be red…It was impossible to look into his face; he blinded one with his light. Intensely did he shine. He issued rays of light from himself; his rays reached in all directions; his brilliant rays penetrated everywhere (Sahagún 195382: 7: 7). One of the best representations of Tonatiuh sitting within the sun disk is the Humboldt Disk (Beyer 1921: 18) (Fig. 3.30a-b). The sun god in the center of the Humboldt solar disk has a large volute or breath emanation which is common for the solar deities of Chichen Itza and do not typically appear with later representations. The back of the Aztec Stuttgart Statuette depicts a similar looking Tonatiuh inside the disk which is carried by a large plumed serpent (Coltman 2007, 2009) (Fig.3.30c). As Nicholson (2005: 75) notes, there are a number of key similarities including both figures sitting cross-legged, nose bars, the tezcacuitlapilli back mirror device, and both holding a spear thrower in the left hand and two darts in the right. While an armed solar deity sitting inside a solar disk is most widely expressed at Chichen Itza and the Late Postclassic Aztec, the cross-legged sitting posture of the solar deity goes clear back to the Classic Maya where the cross-legged solar deity sits in the solar cartouche from Dos Pilas . Another representation of Tonatiuh depicts him in a running or flying position common for the Late Postclassic (Fig. 3.30d). The base of the rays on the solar disk are not curved upward like typical Late Postclassic solar rays. Instead, they are pointed like the Early Postclassic solar rays known for Chichen Itza and Ixtapantongo. Complicating the issue further, the sun god holds a curved club like ths descending sun god from the Temple of the Warriors. As Taube (2015: 108, 122: fig. a-c) 87 notes, these curved clubs are not known for the Late Postclassic and seem to be specifically associated with the Early Postclassic sun god and warrior. If this depiction of the sun god is Late Postclassic, then he is being depicted in an Early Postclassic style, perhaps invoking the earlier sun god of the Early Postclassic. Many Late Postclassic representations of solar disks depict the petaled form of the flower within the disk which reminds one of the close associations between the sun and flowers among the Maya. The most well-known sun disk, the Aztec Calendar Stone, also depicts this convention and is basically one giant flower with the sun god placed in the center (Fig.). The central image of the figure within this disk has been a point of debate for decades (see Villela and Miller 2010). I see no reason to break from tradition and suspect it is nothing different than what had been cemented in Mesoamerican ideology for centuries—that Tonatiuh, the sun god, ultimate devourer of hearts and blood, the bringer of warmth and light, peering out of his solar disk which is the portal to paradise and the afterlife destination of kings, heroic warriors, and venerated ancestors. For the Late Postclassic Aztec, the birth of male children was intimately tied into serving the sun as a warrior and offering one’s blood on the battlefield or in sacrifice. Baudez and Latsanopoulos (2010: 17) note some interesting accounts from Sahagún regarding the birth of boys and their debt to the sun. From the very moment of birth, these small male children are destined to provide the ultimate drink of the sun god with the midwife stating: “it was all affliction, travail, that would befall him on earth, and that he would die in war, or would die in sacrifice to the gods” and that “Thou hast been sent into warfare. War is thy desert, thy task. Thou shalt give drink, nourishment, food to the sun, 88 the lord of the earth. Thy real home, thy property, thy lot is the home of the sun there in the heavens (Sahagún 1959-1982: VI: 171). Here, the midwife is clearly referring to the eastern solar paradise, the home of Tonatiuh. The invocations to the sun and the solar paradise continue with the bathing ceremony where the midwife raises him towards the heavens and cries out to the sun and thus proclaims perhaps he will go to know thy home, the place of contentment, the place of happiness, there where the eagle warriors, the ocelot warriors, the valiant warriors, those who died in war, rejoice, are glad, are happy, remain gladdening thee, remain giving cries to thee (Sahagún 1959-82: VI: 203). During and following the conquest, the sun would continue to be invoked in interesting ways. One such way was the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado being equated with the sun, and referred to as Tonatiuh. As Chinchilla (2013b: 706) notes, the Título Nijaib I as well as other texts from Guatemala describe Pedro de Alvarado as Tonatiuh designating him as the sun and sun god. The Tlaxcalan chronicler Diego Muñoz Camargo notes that don Pedro de Alvarado was called ‘the sun’, the son of the sun, because he was blonde, charismatic, and good looking (Acuña 1984: 238). However, like the sun god, Pedro de Alvarado was also militant and fierce. In the Codex Telleriano-Remensis, folio 46r, the death of Pedro de Alvarado is depicted where he is specifically referenced with the name glyph that is a sun labeled “sol” (Chinchilla 2013b: fig. 3). In a study of Nahuatl doctrinal texts, Burkhart (1988) notes that Jesus Christ was associated with the sun which is still the case in many Mesoamerican communities. Since Christ had solar characteristics dating to the late-medieval period and even way before, this required no leap of faith by Mesoamericans to make this relation. Christ was likely perceived as a new 89 sun presiding over a new era (Burkhart 1988: 706). I would argue that the same could be said for the new sun god of Chichen Itza. Conclusion Chichen Itza has more images of the sun god in a single program than any other site in all Mesoamerica. The many representations of the sun god at Chichen Itza attest to the importance of this individual, one who had Classic Maya origins yet appeared as something fresh and new, most likely emerging out of Terminal Classic sun gods from Ceibal and Ek’Balam but retaining much of the more ancient ideology and iconography surrounding the solar cult and the warlike aspect of K’inich Ajaw. It was the sun god of Chichen Itza who would serve as the protype for the later Nahua sun god Tonatiuh, and the Mixtec One Death, kingly gods who descended with weapons for war and took their royal seat on jaguar thrones. The continuity of this Early Postclassic sun god and the later sun gods of Central and Southern Mexico is striking. Tracing the Early Postclassic sun god and solar symbolism in Mesoamerica constitutes the direct historical approach at its best. As Nicholson (1976: 172) notes: Religious iconographic devices in all cultures undoubtedly undergo some shift in meaning over timespans, but when the ideological systems whose concepts they graphically express do not undergo radical modification it seems likely that most of them tend to retain their essential original meanings more or less indefinitely. There is a lack of solar imagery at Tula suggesting Chichen Itza was the major source of solar ideology that would enter into Central Mexico (Matos and Solís 2004: 8788). The general absence of a sun god at Tula, aside from the Ixtapantongo rock painting 90 and an appearance on two Toltec vases, is perplexing and may indicate that Chichen Itza was conceived as the home of the sun by the Toltec inhabitants of Tula and other people of Western Mesoamerica. Aside from this vibrant sun god entering the ideology of Central Mexico, other aspects of solar symbolism derived from the Classic Maya likely took hold here, including the Xiuhcoatl which likely derived from the Classic Maya step fret solar breath serpent. More than just the sun god, solar ideology included a set of related beliefs, events, and rituals. 91 Chapter 4: A Wind from the West: Enter K’uk’ulkan While the plumed serpent was widely known and vividly portrayed in the earlier cultures of the Olmec, Classic Maya, and Classic period metropolis of Teotihuacan, this chapter will focus primarily on the Early Postclassic plumed serpent of Chichen Itza in Yucatan, and the contemporaneous Toltec site of Tula, which is almost directly due west. Most representations of the feathered serpent at Chichen Itza depict a plumed rattlesnake, an embodiment of wind and breath and bringer of rain, with central Mexican origins dating back to Early Classic Teotihuacan. In Classic Maya art, however, plumed serpents are not rattlesnakes and lack plumage aside from a quetzal crest, an attribute which frequently occurs in Late Postclassic representations from the northern Maya lowlands (Taube 2010b: 173). The plumed serpent of Chichen Itza often has a combination of both Central Mexican and Maya attributes making it a hybrid of these eastern and western civilizations. The plumed serpent was a multi-functional being. As the ultimate being of wind and breath, the plumed serpent is the road of the rain gods, ushering them in from the east. However, this important being also serves as the daily vehicle or path of the sun, which is born daily out of the watery depths of the underworld. One of the major artistic tropes during the Early Postclassic is the Toltec warrior being paired with a plumed serpent. Much as the plumed serpent serves as a bringer of rain and road of the sun, it is also the celestial vehicle for the heroic Toltec warrior. Many attributes and functions of the Early Postclassic plumed serpent are readily identifiable in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico. 92 A Plumed Being of Wind and Breath One of the more noticeable features of the great Castillo at Chichen Itza are the large pair of plumed serpent balustrades that face towards the Sacred Cenote lying on a north to south axis (Fig. 4.1a). This northern pair of plumed serpent balustrades are the only pair on this radial structure, unlike the Osario pyramid which has sets of plumed serpent balustrades on all four sides. Significantly, Landa mentioned that the Castillo was named after K’uk’ulkan meaning ‘plumed serpent’, a great lord who came to Chichen Itza from the west: It is believed among the Indians that with the Itzas who occupied Chichen Itza, there reigned a great lord, named Kukulcan, and that the principal building [Castillo], which is called Kukulcan, shows this to be true. They say that he arrived from the west, but they differ among themselves whether he arrived before or after the Itzas or with them (Tozzer 1941:20-23). According to Landa, this pyramid is dedicated to K’uk’ulkan and the large pair of plumed serpent balustrades seem to confirm this. The pair of plumed serpents forming the balustrades have spiral breath elements emanating from the corners of the mouth, fitting for a creature who is the embodiment of both wind and breath (see Taube 2001) (Fig.4.1b). The plumed serpent may be the most pervasive and emblematic symbol for all Mesoamerica, with deep origins extending back to the formative Olmec (Coe 1968:114; Piña Chan 1977: 19; Taube 1995: 83-91). The Maya, with their intense interest in conceptions of breath, were naturally drawn to the serpent who was the ultimate embodiment of wind and breath (see Taube 2001). It is this aspect that also fascinated Teotihuacan which has one of the most impressive structures dedicated to this being in the 93 Temple of Quetzalcoatl (200 C.E.) where plumed serpents appear on balustrades and on the facades of the temple where their heads peer out from petalled flowers (Sugiyama 1989; Taube 1992c). For Classic Teotihuacan and highland Mexico, the plumed serpent is the quetzal covered embodiment of wind and breath who brings the summer rains from the eastern lands of the Maya (Fig. 4.2a). As a carrier of rain, the plumed serpents of Teotihuacan frequently disgorge torrents of water from their mouths. A Teotihuacan style vase from Tikal depicts a pair of intertwined quetzal crested plumed serpents disgorging torrents of water from their mouths (Fig.4.2b). A mural from Teotihuacan depicts the god of rain and lightning, Tlaloc, being carried in the mouth of the plumed serpent, thus conveying the message that this plumed being is the ultimate bringer of rain (Fig.4.2c). At Terminal Classic Uxmal, the plumed serpent carries an impersonator of Chahk in its mouth (Fig.4.2d). Similarly, the Late Postclassic Maya plumed serpent frequently serves as the vehicle of the Maya rain god Chahk, and a mural from Tulum Structure 16 portrays Chahk riding on the back of the plumed serpent wielding his lightning axe (see Miller 1982: pl. 36). One of the most expressive acts of rainmaking is the overturning of a water jar (see Schaafsma and Taube 2006). Pages 12 to 18 of the Codex Madrid portray explicit acts of rainmaking with a series of flying crested rattlesnakes emptying water jars given them by the Chahks. As the Late Postclassic Aztec noted, Quetzalcoatl was the guide, “the roadsweeper of the rain gods, of the masters of water, of those who brought rain” (Sahagún 1950-82: I: 9). As an eastern being, the plumed serpent may well have been an introduction into Central Mexico from the Maya lands to the east. As Seler (1900-1901: 44) notes: “Hence the East Wind was precisely described as tlalocayotl, “the wind that 94 comes from the land of the Rain Gods.” Seler (ibid.) further notes that when there was drought or famine, it was assumed that this god had went back home to the east and that his return should be looked for. For Classic Teotihuacan, the plumed serpent was a rattlesnake completely covered in quetzal plumage. Typically, Maya plumed serpents were not rattlesnakes (Sharp 1975: 14). Maya plumed serpents were rarely covered in quetzal plumage save for a distinct quetzal crest (Taube 2010b: 173). 9 It may be that the Teotihuacanos depicted their local rattlesnake completely covered in quetzal plumage as if to signify that this was a foreign being from somewhere geographically distinct from highland Mexico. Another trait of Maya plumed serpents is that they tend to have beards. One such being, a a Classic period plumed serpent widely known as the Bearded Dragon frequently has a beard and in one case carries the Ik’ sign for wind and breath in its mouth (Fig.4.3a). Nicholson (1987: 180) notes that the plumed serpents from Cacaxtla and Xochicalco are both bearded, a Maya trait not shared with the plumed serpents of Teotihuacan (Fig.4.3b). The beard is also present in Yucatan on plumed serpents from Uxmal and Chichen Itza (Fig.4.3c-d). An Early Postclassic Toltec style shell depicts a warrior paired with a plumed serpent (Aguilera and Hernández 2005: 30-33). This plumed serpent is particularly important as it embodies multiple iconographic attributes known for earlier Classic Maya and Teotihuacan style 9 A Late Postclassic Aztec fragment from the Coatlicue/Yollotlicue grouping from the House of Eagles at Templo Mayor depicts a plumed serpent with a distinctive quetzal crest (González López 2019: fig. 6.347a-b). The quetzal crest is not a feature widely known for Aztec plumed serpents but is instead, a characteristic of Maya plumed serpents. 95 plumed serpents including a plumed crest and beard, both attributes of Classic Maya plumed serpents (Fig.4.3e). Furthermore, the serpent appears to be disgorging water from its mouth much like the pair of plumed serpents from Early Classic Tikal (Fig.4.2b). The feathered serpents of Xochicalco and Cacaxtla display both Central Mexican and Maya attributes. For instance, these plumed serpents are completely covered in quetzal plumage like the Teotihuacan plumed serpent, yet they lack the distinctive rattlesnake tail. Sectioned conch, a symbol of wind and breath, decorate the bodies of the plumed serpents at Xochicalco (Taube 2001: fig. 95b). Border fragments from Corridor 12 at Tetitla, Teotihuacan, depict Maya style plumed serpents whose bodies are decorated with conch shells (Taube 2001: fig. 95a). Another strong Maya attribute of plumed serpents are floral tipped tails, usually a bright yellow which is the preferred color of flowers in ancient Mesoamerica. The dissemination of this motif into Central Mexico can be seen on the plumed serpents of Xochicalco and in the murals of epi-Classic Cacaxtla where two magnificent plumed serpents have elaborate yellow floral tails with quetzal plumes emerging from them as the breath or aroma of the blossom (Coltman and Taube n.d.; Taube 2010: 173) (Fig. 4.4a-c). Such conventions of quetzal plumes representing the breath or aroma of flowers is a common theme in Classic Maya art (see K4019, K8743). Like the floral tails known for epi-Classic Cacaxtla and Xochicalco, one of the defining traits of the Early Postclassic plumed serpent is the floral tail emitting quetzal plumed breath (Fig. 4.4de). A plate from Tuxtla depicts a plumed serpent with quetzal crest and beard as well as the yellow floral tail exhaling quetzal plumes (Coe et al. 2019: fig. 132). The quetzal crest and beard are traits found with Maya plumed serpents while the floral tail and breath 96 emanations are similar to examples from Cacaxtla and XochicalcoAt Chichen Itza, the plumed serpent figure is the ultimate conflation of east meets west as it is a quetzal covered rattle snake with a quetzal crest, beard, and floral tail with quetzal breath emanations emerging from the blossom. As Nicholson (1987: 180-181) notes: “Instead of being entirely of Mexican derivation, the feathered serpents of Terminal Classic Uxmal and Postclassic Chichen Itza may well have fused iconographic elements and concomitant ideological concepts from both the Classic Southern Maya Lowlands and from Central Mexico.” While there are notable iconographic differences between Classic Maya plumed serpents, those of Classic central Mexico, and Early Postclassic Yucatan, they share many of the same functions, first and foremost as embodiments of wind and breath that serve as the path, road, or celestial vehicles for bringing rain. As Taube (2010b: 173) notes, the quetzal plumes represent the aromatic breath emanation from the flowers. The meaning extends well beyond just flowers as the quetzal plumes relate to breath more generally. A seated ruler depicted in the murals of Xultun, has a large single quetzal plume emerging through his nostril (Fig.4.5a) The plumed serpents at Xochicalco exhale quetzal plumes from their nostrils, a convention common with plumed serpents (Fig. 4.5b). The facades of the Osario pyramid are decorated with dozens of images of an elaborately adorned and bejeweled K’awiil as a quetzal who exhales quetzal plume breath (Fig. 4.5c). In the murals of Mulchic in the Puuc region, an individual appears with a single feather breath element emerging from his nostrils (Fig. 4.5d). Individuals in the much later Historia Totleca-Chichimeca, have elaborate quetzal feathers emerging from their mouths denoting breath or precious speech (Fig. 4.5e). The quetzal 97 plumes covering the rattlesnake make up the very essence of this being as an embodiment of wind and breath with the serpent itself being one large breath emanation. In Classic Maya art, breath emanations are often in the form of serpents. The pre-eminent rain and lightning deity, Chahk, frequently has the breath serpent before his face (Taube 1992b: 19). In the Puuc murals of Mulchic, Chahk figures exhale serpent breath (Piña Chan 1964: fig.2). Painted stones once forming part of a bench in the Temple of the Chacmool at Chichen Itza, depict Chahk figures with long sinuous breath serpents being exhaled (Morris et al. 1931: vol. II: pl. 133). At Chichen Itza, the serpent breath motif also appears as the large profile head of a serpent as can be seen in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where it appears before the face of the sun god. Representations of K’uk’ulkan/Quetzalcoatl at Chichen Itza While there are many images of plumed serpents and individuals standing with them at Chichen Itza, there is one particular individual who clearly stands out from the rest. The most elaborate representation of this being appears on the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where he is backed by a large and elaborate plumed serpent. The most distinguishing feature of the individual paired with this magnificent plumed serpent is an elaborate mask worn over the eyes and mouth which encircles his eye and is formed by the body of a serpent (Fig. 4.6a). This mask is almost identical to a gold mask found in the Sacred Cenote which is composed of a mouthpiece and a pair of goggles topped by illustrious plumed serpents marked with Ik’ ‘wind’ signs (Coggins and Shane 1984: 55; Lothrop 1952: 69; Taube 1994: 221) (Fig. 4.6b-c). The same gold mask is worn by the plumed serpent figure standing opposite the sun god in the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Taube 98 1994: 220).The murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars depicts this individual again intertwined with an illustrious plumed serpent standing opposite of the solar deity (Fig. 4.6d). Seler (1990-96: 6: 119) noted that despite the face being badly preserved, the head ornament is still preserved exactly as it appeared on the feathered serpent figure from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars. In other words, Seler recognized that the Quetzalcoatl figure from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars and the individual facing the solar deity on the mural on the east wall of the Upper Temple of the Jaguars was the same individual wearing the same Tlaloc rain serpent mask. Furthermore, this figure also wears a large circular disk over his chest like the individual from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars. This individual has flames and darts emanating from his body suggesting that he is the embodiment of Venus as morning star, a likely portrayal of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli ‘Lord of Dawn’ who according to later Aztec myth, Quetzalcoatl transformed into upon his cremation in the east (Bierhorst 1992: 36). The Tlaloc rain mask of a serpent circling each eye with two around the mouth worn by Quetzalcoatl at Chichen Itza appears several other times at the site (Tozzer 1957: 114). Two Atlantean figures from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars and the Upper Temple of the Big Tables wear clear versions of this mask, probably depicting Quetzalcoatl as a world bearer (Tozzer 1957: II: fig. 214, 215) (Fig.4.6e). Once again, these masks are almost identical representations of the gold mask found in the Sacred Cenote. Shell serpent goggles are known in several archaeological examples. A pair of shell serpent goggles attributed to the Maya depict quetzal crests and beards, both characteristics of the Maya plumed serpent (Fig. 4.7a). A similar pair made from mother of pearl in the Museum of 99 Fine Arts, Houston, depicts the Maya plumed serpent (Fig. 4.7b). These shell goggles are also known form Classic period Teotihuacan. A pair of shell goggles found during excavations of Tlajinga 33 are strikingly similar to the Maya examples previously noted (from Robb 2017 fig. 130) (Fig. 4.7c). In fact, Sahagún mentions a “serpent mask made of turquoise” as being part of the attire of Quetzalcoatl. The Spanish text gives a striking description of this object: …this mask had made of the same stones a double and twisted serpent whose fold was the tip of the nose, so that the head was separated from the tail, and the head and part of the body went over the one eye in such a way that it formed an eyebrow, and the tail and part of the body went over the other eye, and formed the other eyebrow (Feest 1990: 37) While this mask is described as being part of the attire of Quetzalcoatl, it is also part of the insignia of the rain god, Tlaloc. A stone statue of Tlaloc depicts two snakes forming the face mask and meeting head to head forming the characteristic mouth of the rain deity (Moctezuma and Solís 2002: 426-427: fig. 112). A pair of votive vessels depict Tlaloc wearing elaborate rattlesnake masks (Moctezuma and Solís 2002: 419: fig. 236, 237). A sculpture of Tlaloc in the Dallas Museum of Art depicts the clear importance of serpents making up the mask. The two serpents form around the eyebrows and around the nose with the head of each serpent ending up by the nostrils. The Tlaloc rain mask likely refers to the plumed serpent as a wind being and carrier of rain. The upper portion of the gold cenote mask depicts elaborate versions of the plumed serpent whose body is decorated 100 with the Ik’ sign for wind. The plumed serpent as the embodiment of wind and bringer of rain goes far back into antiquity in Mesoamerica. Plumed Serpent as Balustrades As previously noted, Chichen Itza is characterized by a number of temples that are radial in design with four stairway entrances. The two primary radial structures at Chichen Itza, the Castillo and the Osario both have plumed serpent balustrades oriented towards cenotes. 10 The EVII-sub pyramid at Uaxactun provides a Classic Maya example of plumed serpent balustrades on all four sides which may constitute earlier forms of the balustrades that are seen at Teotihuacan, Xochicalco, and Chichen Itza (Saturno et al. 2005: 23) (Fig.4.8a). One of the more basic and obvious functions of snakes, and feathered serpents in particular, is that they serve as supernatural vehicles for individuals. An Early Classic conch from Teotihuacan depicts figures running atop a plumed serpent (Saturno et al. 2005: fig. 18d). The most elaborate example comes from the North Wall at San Bartolo where the large breathing plumed serpent serves as a groundline for the Maize God and his attendants (Saturno et al. 2005: 21-25) (Fig.4.8b). It should be noted that the serpent balustrades are always in a set of two. As an example, if one were to face the Flower 10 Erik Boot (2005: 257) identified the plumed serpent balustrades on the Castillo as the deity (U)huk Chapat Tz’ikin K’inich Ahaw and pointed to a number of correspondences between centipedes and serpents. While there was certainly overlap between these two creatures, I am not convinced that this creature is the war-related deity that Boot designates it to be. I still find the simplest identification to be the most likely—that this is the plumed serpent as a road or path like the examples known from Cacaxtla and elsewhere. 101 Mountain cave from the North Wall at San Bartolo, there would be wo large plumed serpents exhaled as breath from each side of the mountains mouth. This could be clearly seen in the recently discovered Holmul Frieze where two large magnificent plumed serpents emerge as the exhaled breath from the maw of the mountain (Estrada-Belli and Tokovinine 2016: 153) (Fig.4.8c). Plumed serpent heads mark the Temple of the Feathered Serpent at Teotihuacan marking these as serpent balustrades (Fig. 4.9a). In the frescoes of the Red Temple at Cacaxtla, plumed serpents ascend the stairway, which reflects the plumed serpent balustrades from Chichen Itza (Fig. 4.9b). Plumed serpent balustrades also serve as vehicles for ascending and descending temples. This is very clear in the small narrow stairway leading up to the Upper Temple of the Jaguars whereby ascending the stairway, you are literally walking up the road of the serpent (Fig.4 .9c). There was a very deliberate and conscious effort to orient plumed serpent balustrades towards cenotes. The plumed serpents that cascade down the Castillo only appear on the north side and face directly towards the Sacred Cenote. The cenotes at Chichen Itza may be conceived as floating primordial seas. The pool of water however need not necessarily represent the eastern Caribbean Sea but can cosmologically refer to other bodies of water: “In Maya belief, terrestrial and ocean waters are a single, dynamically connected entity” (Taube 2010a: 214). Late in the history of Chichen Itza, the architectural and cosmological arrangement of the Osario Group may be modeled after the North Terrace. However, unlike the Castillo, the Osario has plumed and cloud serpent balustrades on all four sides with the primary entrance to the temple facing east towards cenote Xtoloc. In the community of San Angel, Quintana Roo, Group B, Structure 1 102 Stairway and plumed serpent balustrades are directly adjacent to the entrance of the natural cenote which recalls both the alignment with the plumed serpents from the Castillo pointing towards the sacred cenote. As Gallereta Negron and Taube (2005: 99-100) note, while the Osario has serpent balustrades on all four sides, the pair that correspond to the principal doorway face east towards the Cenote Xtoloc. This is likely indicating that the rains come from the east brought by the plumed serpent as an embodiment of wind out of the eastern sea. The Plumed Serpent and Venus The orientation of both the Castillo and Osario towards cenotes incorporates another important feature. Venus platforms were constructed in between the primary entrance of the radial temples and the cenotes indicting that the Venus platform played a crucial role in the orientation between the two landmarks. These platforms are characterized by the large Venus or star signs and are paired with the mat symbol of rulership and the War Serpent, a conjectural and militaristic being whose origins lie in the ancient art of Teotihuacan (see Taube 1992c) (Fig.4.10a). A large plumed serpent whose undulating body is accompanied by fish appears on the upper façade of the Venus platform between the Castillo and Sacred Cenote (Fig.4.10b). Very much like the plumed serpents depicted on the Temple of Quetzalcoatl at Teotihuacan that are adorned with marine shells and other aquatic elements, the fish mark the plumed serpent as a being of water and more specifically, the mythic sea. Interestingly, a large stone altar was found on top of the Tzompantli depicting a pair of intertwined plumed serpents surrounded by many smaller fish, again relating the plumed serpent to the sea (Fig.4.10c). A mural from Late Postclassic 103 Mayapan depicts a bound and speared crocodile, probably the slaying of Itzam Kab Ayin, whose sacrifice creates the world after a flood and is described in colonial Yukatek accounts (Taube 2010a: 204). Significantly, as primordial creatures of the sea, a fish and plumed serpent appear swimming in the upper portion of the mural (Milbrath et al. 2010: fig.7). Plumed serpents also appear on the Venus platform between the Osario and Cenote Xtoloc although in this case, the serpent lacks the fish swimming along its body and the serpent’s body is decorated with cloud motifs marking it as a “cloud serpent”. The mat symbol appearing on the Venus platforms is a symbol of rulership. A Late Postclassic Aztec carving of Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl designated calendrically as Ce Acatl ‘1 Reed’ appears carved into rock at Cerro Malinche . He appears with a feathered serpent in a style reminiscent of Chichen Itza and Tula and stands on a woven mat referring to rulership. The plumed serpent and mat motif can be found as early as Teotihuacan (Taube 2002: Fig. 5ac). The 1 Reed date is particularly significant as the year that Quetzalcoatl transformed into Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, ‘Lord of the Dawn’ who represented Venus as morning star (Coltman 2007). The Anales de Cuauhtitlan gives an account of his death and resurrection: Now, this year, 1 Reed, is when he got to the ocean, the seashore, so it is told and related. Then he halted and wept and gathered up his attire, putting on his head fan, his turquoise mask, and so forth. And as soon as he was dressed, he set himself on fire and cremated himself. The old people said he was changed into the star that appears at dawn. Therfore they say it came forth when Quetzalcoatl died, and they called him Lord of the Dawn. (Bierhorst 1992:36). 104 Plumed serpents with star signs on their bodies occur widely in the art of Chichen Itza and Tula, however there are earlier antecedents, including a Late Classic example from Maltrata, Veracruz (Medellín Zenil 1962; Nicholson 1976: 42). The placement of these star signs along the bodies of feathered serpents may be a reference to Quetzalcoatl’s aspect as Venus, the morning star (Miller 1989). A Fine Orange vessel from the Olsen Collection depicts a serpent whose body extends around the vase (Sharp 1975) (Fig. 4.11a). This serpent has cloud signs on its body like many examples from Chichen Itza. The tail is also in the style of Chichen Itza where there is a rattle, flower, and quetzal plumed breath emanating from the blossom. Venus signs decorate the upper rim of the vessel. Undulating plumed serpents with star or Venus signs appear on the Mercado at Chichen Itza (Fig. 4.11b). Two Venus platforms occur at Chichen Itza with both Venus signs and plumed serpents decorating the platform. One Venus platform sits between the Castillo and the Sacred Cenote while the other one is in front of the Osario pyramid (Fernández Sousa 1996: 89-102, figs. 23-32). The serpents on the Venus platform next to the Osario have Ek’ ‘star’ signs along their bodies, a convention marking this serpent as celestial and probably as an embodiment of Venus (Fig. 4.11c). A probable representation of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli ‘Lord of the Dawn’ occurs on the Toltec style rock painting from Ixtapantongo, Estado de Mexico, where he appears next to the sun god known for Chichen Itza (Taube 1992: 136137; Villagra Caleti 1954) (Fig. 4.11d). The cenotes at Chichen Itza were integrated into the built environment. As Headrick (2018: 201) notes, “…participants moved from pyramid to platform to cenote via a sacbe solidified this contrived human-natural landscape”. The Castillo, Venus Platform, and 105 Sacred Cenote form a north-south axis, while the Osario, accompanying Venus Platform, and Xtoloc cenote provide an east-west axis. Because the Osario faces east towards Cenote Xtoloc, this cenote may represent the eastern sea from where the Sun is carried into the sky by the plumed serpent who is Venus as morning star. The Castillo indicates the same cosmological pattern although it is on a north-south axis. The plumed serpent balustrades from the radial temples face towards cenotes and must pass by the Venus platform on this journey. This is likely an architectural reference to the plumed serpent as Venus oriented towards the cenote as the primordial sea from which it will carry the dawning sun to zenith every morning. Summoned by the Sun There are many Central Mexican accounts of Quetzalcoatl leaving Tula or Tollan in his journey to the east, but none quite so tantalizing as the ones that describe him being summoned by the Sun to come to a “city of the sun” which is called Tlapallan (Dupey García 2018: 165-166). In Sahagún (1950-82, bk. 3: 35) for instance, Quetzalcoatl states “I am called; the sun calleth me (Sahagún 1950-82, bk. 3: 35).” The abridged version of this episode goes even further. Appearing in Sahagún’s introductory prologue to Book VIII, Sahagún mentions that Quetzalcoatl was called by the sun to journey to the east: The city [Tollan] was destroyed and this king put to flight. They say that he travelled to the east, that he went to the city of the sun called Tlapallan, and that he was summoned by the sun (Sahagún 1950-1982, Introductory Volume: 69-70). 106 These brief accounts suggest that the sun deity summoned Quetzalcoatl east to his “city of the sun” for a particular task. This city of the sun, or pueblo del sol is also mentioned in Chimalpain’s account of Quetzalcoatl’s eastward journey: hasta el rumbo de la salida del sol fue a mirar; hacia allá se fue, por el pueblo del sol, al lugar de nombre Tlapallan; hasta allá se fue (Chimalpain 1991:157). Another colonial account mentions the sun himself calling for Quetzalcoatl: 'And when the people asked him what he was going to do there, Quetzalcoatl answered that the ruler of those lands, who was the Sun, had called for him. This story was wide-spread among the Mexicans.' (Torquemada, book VI: ch. 24). As Jansen (2010: 96) states, “In geographical reality the great sanctuary of the East may then have been Chichen Itza, the final destination of Quetzalcoatl-Kukulcan's journey”. Years before, Nigel Davies (1977: 38) had noted that… “even Sahagun’s reference to Tollan Tlapallan might imply Chichen”. Tollan Tlapallan may very well be the same as Tlapallan. Davies (1977:143) would elaborate on one of the colonial sources later on: …evidence from Chimalpain tends to suggest that Tlapallan really is synonymous with Tillan Tlapallan, lying in the east, to which Quetzalcoatl fled at the fall of Tollan. Chimalpain writes of “the direction in which the Sun rises, in which he holds his pueblos, the Pueblos that worshipped Tonatiuh, a land called Tlapallan. It is interesting that in these accounts, Tlapallan is referred to as the city of the sun. The Cantares Mexicanos (1985: 235) mentions Tlapallan in the context of paradise: “Warriors, I grieve. And I’m carried along like an arbor. In Tlapallan, in paradise, all are undone”. In the dictionary of the Cantares Mexicanos, Tlapallan is described as “the place 107 of dawn, the eastern home of the sun” and “the warrior’s paradise, the afterworld” (Bierhorst 1985: 346). The root of the word tlapallan is tlapalli, which relates to color in general but also to red coloring material (Dupey García 2016: 249). The Florentine Codex for instance, mentions cochineal in relation to tlapalli and this colorant is also associated with blood. Tlapalli is also joined with the word for blood, etzli to form the difraismo in eztli in tlapalli which is invoked in one cosmogonic myth where the sun demands bloody offerings (ibid; 251-253). If true, these colonial accounts from both Central Mexican sources and Landa for Yucatan may explain in part, some of the complex and little understood relationship between Tula and Chichen Itza. While these ethnohistoric sources are certainly important and should be considered, it cannot be the only source to base this argument upon. Fortunately, there is a lot of visual evidence at Chichen Itza that also attests to this relationship. The Path of the Sun This myth may explain, at least in part, the close relationship the sun god has with the plumed serpent. The first pairing of a plumed serpent being and a solar god occurs at Chichen Itza. This constitutes one of the major themes at the site. It is a relationship based upon the offering of hearts to the sun god and the plumed serpent serving as the celestial vehicle for the dawning sun. There are three distinct scenes of the sun god sitting opposite the plumed serpent on the wooden lintel from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.29) (Fig.4.12a). In all three scenes, a cuauhxicalli full of hearts sits between them while the sun god stretches out his spear-thrower to consume the offering (Taube 1994: 108 229, fig. 24c). The cuauhxicalli vessels are present on the North Colonnade where warriors emerge from the maws of serpents and stretch their spear throwers out towards the cuauhxicalli, much like the sun god does on the wooden lintel (Morris et al. 1931: pl. 124125; Taube 2009: 103, fig. 14b-c;). A jade plaque found in the Sacred Cenote depicts the solar deity riding on a serpent (Coggins and Shane 1984: 52; Proskouriakoff 1974: 192, pl. 78a) (Fig.4.12b). He can be identified as a solar deity by the solar pectoral with pointed rays he wears. His serpent vehicle has circular elements on its body which are closely related to other Early Postclassic and later Aztec plumed serpents. On the north wall from the North Temple of the Great Ballcourt, the sun god sits on a jaguar throne and is completely encircled by the plumed serpent, much as if it composed a circular disk around him (Fig. 4.12c). The large Las Monjas solar flower is flanked by a pair of plumed serpents who are likely serving as the road for the dawning sun out of the eastern sea (Fig. 4.12d.). With this many examples, this clearly constitutes a major theme at Chichen Itza. The theme extends further and can be seen architecturally. This is reflected quite explicitly on the outside decoration of the Lower and Upper Temple of the Jaguars which is composed of two intertwined plumed serpents carrying solar disks in the design of the tezcacuitlapilli back shields or solar mirrors (Fig.4.13a). As Seler noted (1990-96: VI: 77), these disks were painted turquoise blue. Intertwined serpents carry a floral disk in a section of the façade from the Castillo-sub (Tozzer 1957: II: fig. 86) (Fig.4.13b-c). Similarly, in the Castillo-sub, two intertwined plumed serpents carry a solar flower (Fig.4.14a). The intertwined plumed serpents carrying solar disks is a motif known from Late Classic El Tajin and Late Postclassic Tulum where plumed serpents serving as the road of the sun 109 carry solar flowers (Fig.4.14b-c). A Huastec conch pectoral depicts an armed sun god with a prominent fish placed between two plumed serpents, a likely portrayal of the plumed serpents carrying the sun up from the sea (Taube 2015: 11). This recalls the circular altar from the Tzompantli depicting the intertwined plumed serpents with fish along their bodies as well as the plumed serpent and fish from the Venus platform. The intention is clear; the plumed serpent is a being of the eastern sea and the daily vehicle of the sun (Taube 2010a: 176). Furthermore, the fish swimming along the plumed serpents bodies may relate to the cenotes as the watery homes of these creatures. The plumed serpent as a path or road of the sun is a major theme at Chichen Itza but also constitutes a well understood concept in earlier Mesoamerica. The oldest visual evidence of the plumed serpent carrying the sun out of the sea is from Takalik Abaj where the plumed serpent rises out of the sea carrying a petalled solar disk with the k’in sign in the center. The yax rimmed disk is strikingly similar to the petaled pattern of Early Postclassic turquoise solar mirrors, those these also reflect the form of a petalled flower. A redware jar from San Agustin Acasaguastlan, Guatemala, depicts the sun god wearing a centipede headdress and holding two large plumed serpents (Schele and Miller 1986: 193194). One of the plumed serpents carries the sun god in his mouth (Taube 2015: fig. 5.15c). At Late Classic Cotzumalhuapa, the Bilbao stelae concern the evocation of the flower world and its denizens including the sun god (Chinchilla 2013, 2015). Chinchilla (2013: 84) notes that the sun god from Monument 3 and El Castillo Stela 1 emerge from a large maw that serves as the access to the realm of the sun god. Chinchilla notes that Bilbao Stela 7 depicts a full-frontal view of this maw with a long haired figure emerging from a maw 110 (Fig. 7.26c). This is a likely pairing of the sun god and plumed serpent figure. Given the major themes of the sun god and warriors being paired with plumed serpents in the Early Postclassic, it may be that like Cotzumalhuapa, the plumed serpents of Chichen Itza are the vehicles that transport one to the solar flower world. The concept of the plumed serpent serving as the path of the sun was so ingrained in Maya belief, that it has persisted in recent times. Among the Tzotzil Maya, the sun rises in the east at dawn and is preceded by a large plumed serpent representing Venus who is known as Mukta ch’on (Vogt 1969: 89). Another Tzotzil Maya account explains this in detail: In the morning the Sun rises in the East preceded by Venus, the Morning Star, a large plumed serpent called Kukumch’on by the Tzotzil. As in Prehispanic times, this great star is the precursor and heralder of the Sun and is still identified with the serpent deity as it was formerly throughout all Mesoamerica. The Sun ascends into the heavens on a flower-laden path until noon when it reaches the thirteenth level of heaven in the center of the sky, the heart of heaven. William Holland (1961) pp.102-104 This is the likely scenario for Chichen Itza which is simply tapping into a daily cosmological event that has roots extending back to at least the Pre-Classic Maya and one that has continued to persist in contemporary Maya thought. It is quite an elegant yet simple implication—the plumed serpent rises up as the great heralder of the sun out of the eastern sea, which was likely conceived of in the cenotes at the site. The Plumed Path of the Heroic Warrior Aside from just serving as the celestial vehicle for sun and rain gods, the plumed serpent also serves as the celestial path of heroic warriors. One of the more common motifs 111 in Early Postclassic art is the warrior paired with the plumed serpent. Nicholson (2000a: 55) noted that this feature from Building A at Cacaxtla might have been the earliest example of this widespread image. At the Initial Series Group, warriors with their plumed serpent counterparts stand over a row of tezcacuitlapilli, the turquoise solar back mirrors worn by warriors (Fig.4.15a-b). In the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars, warriors stand on plumed serpents as if they were their vehicles for use in supernatural flight. The Early Postclassic rock painting from Ixtapontongo depicts a figure with star signs and a plumed serpent, an Early Postclassic representation of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the militaristic and stellar embodiment of the morning star (Coltman 2007, 2009; Mathiowetz et al. 2015; Taube 1992: 136). Building A from Cacaxtla depicts warriors standing on plumed serpents, which Nicholson (2000a: 55) notes may be the earliest example of this widespread image. A gold disk from the Sacred Cenote depicts the legs of a reclining warrior using a plumed serpent as a vehicle (Fig.4.16a). Another gold disk found in the Sacred Cenote depicts a warrior descending from the open maw of a plumed a serpent with cloud signs on its body (Fig.4.16b). Flying figures using plumed serpents as vehicles appear on the El Corral at Tula (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 88a-d) (Fig.4.16c). A Toltec style shell dating to the Early Postclassic depicts an individual wearing Toltec military attire including the butterfly chest pectoral standing with a huge plumed serpent, a common pairing in Early Postclassic Mesoamerica (Aguilera and Hernández 2005: 30-3). An incised shell pendant from Tula depicts a Toltec warrior and quite possibly Quetzalcoatl in avian costume standing with a plumed serpent (Fig. 4.16d). The plumed serpent, Quetzalcoatl, was a major god of the Aztec with both religious and political connotations. A Late 112 Postclassic Aztec relief carving at Cerro de la Malinche near Tula conveys this especially well, where Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl stands with a plumed serpent and engages in bloodletting while standing on a mat, a symbol of rulership (Pasztory 1998: 125-127) (Fig. 4.16e). He is identified by the calendrical name appearing in the carving, ‘1 Acatl’ (Reed), a calendrical name shared with Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, ‘Lord of the Dawn’ who Quetzalcoatl was resurrected as upon his cremation following his journey east (see Codex Telleriano-Remensis p. 14; Bierhorst 1992: 36). Plumed serpents frequently appear on X Fine Orange or closely associated styles of pottery during the Early Postclassic (Smith 1957; Brainerd 1958) 11. One such vessel from Chichen Itza but attributed as an import from Cerro Montoso depicts an elaborate plumed serpent (Brainerd 1958: fig.90a). On one Fine X Orange vessel from Isla de Sacrificios, two warriors are depicted standing with plumed rattlesnakes (Du Solier 1943). A pyriform vase from Edzna depicts warriors with plumed serpent figures like the motif from Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula (Brainerd 1958: fig. 89a). Edzna Stela 16 depicts a seated individual with a plumed serpent, recalling this common Early Postclassic pairing (Taube 1994: 222). The Plumed Serpent in Late Postclassic Yucatan and Central Mexico The plumed serpent of the Late Postclassic took on many traits and characteristics of the Early Postclassic examples. The Late Postclassic plumed serpents from Mayapan are 11 The characteristics of X Fine Orange polychrome are its fine texture, homogeneity, lack of temper, and orange color (Smith 1957). However, there does seem to be much confusion over real X Fine Orange pottery and other fine orange pottery categories. 113 depicted as rattlesnakes much like earlier Chichen Itza (Smith 1962: fig. 6a-h). While the Mayapan serpents have clear central Mexican traits such as the rattle tail and no quetzal crest, they do have one key Maya characteristic. Plumed serpent heads from Mayapan depict no quetzal crest but have the distinct sinuous breath element emerging from the corner of the mouth (Fig.4.17a-b). Furthermore, the Mayapan plumed serpents lack the distinctive floral tail and quetzal plumage emerging from the blossom. A Late Postclassic graffito from Chichen Itza depicts a quetzal crested plumed serpent (Fig.4.17c). This serpent and the ones from Mayapan are strikingly similar to examples of plumed serpents in the Codex Madrid (Fig. 4.17d). Like the Mayapan plumed serpents, those depicted in the Codex Madrid are also rattlesnakes. A plumed serpent with a quetzal crest was found at the site of San Angel, Quintana Roo (Gallareta Negrón and Taube 2005) (Fig. 4.17e). This along with another plumed serpent head, were a pair of balustrades that faced a cenote much like the Castillo and Osario at Chichen Itza. A large serpent head presumably part of a balustrade was found at the site of Vista Alegre, Quintana Roo (Rissolo 2007) (Fig. 4.17f). A Fine Orange vessel from the Late Postclassic site of Chac Mool, Quintana Roo, depicts a plumed serpent with several striking characteristics (Fig. 4.17g). The tail is depicted in the Early Postclassic conflation of the rattle with flower emitting quetzal breath plumes. The style of this serpent, particularly the open maw, is remarkably similar to a serpent in the Late Postclassic Codex Laud (Fig. 4.17h). Many Late Postclassic Aztec representations of plumed serpents retain the floral tail with quetzal plume breath emanations emerging from it. One such example occurs on Codex Borbonicus p. 14 where Quetzalcoatl has this Early Postclassic tail (Fig. 4.18a). 114 Another excellent example appear on an Aztec stone sculpture depicting an elaborate feathered serpent with quetzal crest and Early Postclassic tail that is similar to the one in the Codex Borbonicus (Nicholson 2000a: fig. 4.18). These tails are identical to the ones known for Early Postclassic Chichen Itza. One of the more vivid portrayals of the plumed serpent as the road of the sun occurs on the back of the Aztec Stuttgart Statuette, which depicts a skeletal Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli as the embodiment of Venus as morning star, standing like a Toltec warrior (Coltman 2007, 2009). The large plumed serpent on the back carries the sun deity Tonatiuh, who sits in a solar disk (Fig.4.18b). The bottom of the statuette depicts the earth goddess, Tlaltecuhtli, who wears a skull and cross bones skirt in the shape of a bowl which serves as the dark and watery womb from where the sun is born (Coltman 2018; Taube 2009). Much like the plumed serpent rises daily out of the cenote carrying the sun to zenith, so it is with the plumed serpent on the back of the Stuttgart statuette who carries the sun out of the dark and watery depths of Tlaltecuhtli’s womb. A Late Postclassic spear thrower depicts the body of a plumed serpent decorated with Venus signs and a daisy chain of hummingbirds (Fig.4.18c). The plumed serpent rises out of a pool of water which probably represents “…the souls of warriors rising at dawn out of the eastern sea on the Flower Road of the plumed serpent” (Taube 2010b: 176). Interestingly, there is a human face in the mouth of the plumed serpent figure. While it is hard to tell, the figure the plumed serpent carries in its mouth may be the sun god. The plumed serpent would have risen out of the eastern sea carrying the sun with the hummingbird souls of warriors accompanying them on their journey. 115 In Late Postclassic Central Mexico, Offerings 10 and 14 from the Templo Mayor are funerary urns of the Fine Orange variety depicting Aztec gods Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl paired with plumed serpents recalling Early Postclassic scenes from Chichen Itza and Tula (Fig.4.19a). These Templo Mayor vessels are imitations of X Fine Orange vessels extending into the Early Postclassic (Nicholson and Keber 1983: 95). The top of the vessels depict stylized conch, a symbol of wind and breath that undoubtedly relate to the serpents below (Fig.4.19b). A Late Postclassic sculpture of the plumed serpent with floral tail bears a huge conch shell on its back marking it as a being of wind and breath and recalling earlier examples from Xochicalco of sectioned conch on the body of the serpent (López Luján 2016: fig. 12). The plumed serpent on the Templo Mayor vase depicts quetzal plume breath emanating from the nostrils, a convention that is also strikingly similar to Maya style plumed serpents at Xochicalco (Fig.4.19c-d). The remains of two cremated individuals were found in the Templo Mayor vessels. In Mexica society, cremation was reserved exclusively for slain warriors and elite individuals (Chavez Balderas 2007). Chavez Balderas (2014: 177-180) confirms an earlier idea put forth by Matos Moctezuma (1989: 51) that these offerings represent the defeated elite Mexica warriors. The empty spaces which these gods occupy on these vessels is characterized by jewels and other floating elements suggesting that they are in fact, in paradise. Mixcoatl wears the butterfly chest pectoral of Toltec warriors. These vessels are decorated with the war gods in paradise holding the cremated remains of the warriors whose souls went to this paradise. Given the major artistic trope of the Early Postclassic with warriors paired with or riding on plumed serpents as well as the plumed serpents 116 important daily job of bringing up the sun, it is possible that these beings were also the vehicles used to access paradise. The sixteenth-century Palencia Cross in Spain depicts a remarkable scene of paradise with many motifs being pre-contact Aztec, including a plumed serpent (Garcia Barríos and Parada López de Corselas 2014) (Fig.4.20). Animals and insects abound, including the plumed serpent (ibid; 166-168). This is more than likely a vivid portrayal of Flower Mountain (see Taube 2004a). Such a scene can be found much earlier in the North Wall at Late pre-Classic San Bartolo where the exterior of Flower Mountain is occupied by snakes, jaguars, and birds (Saturno et al. 2005: 15, fig. 12). It is fitting that the plumed serpent would inhabit such a locale, as an eastern being who brings the rain and serves as the great heralder of the sun. Conclusion The Early Postclassic plumed serpent was the ultimate amalgamation of east and west. With many Classic Maya traits including floral tail, beard, and quetzal crest, the complete coverage of quetzal plumage and rattle tail are Classic central Mexican traits likely derived from Teotihuacan. However, the plumed serpent is an eastern being from where it brings the rain and for Teotihuacan and highland Mexico, was equated with the eastern tropical lands of the Maya. The plumed serpent was also the road of the sun, pulling it up daily out of the eastern sea. Far from just being the road of rain and the sun, plumed serpents also served as balustrades marking the path of ascent and descent into and out of temples. Facing towards cenotes at Chichen Itza, these balustrades constituted ‘serpent roads’, with the cenotes being the likely home of these beings from where they would rise 117 up daily with the freshly awakened dawning sun. The various architectural orientations at Chichen Itza may very well refer to the daily path of sun traveling from east to west. The many representations of the sun god paired with the plumed serpent speaks to this cosmic journey. Miller (1982: 89) notes that “It is possible that the Maya believed that, in the guise of a feathered serpent, Venus as the Morning Star could use its rope-like form literally to pull up the sun each morning…”. Much like the sun god, heroic warriors used plumed serpents as celestial vehicles. As a quetzal covered embodiments of wind, the plumed serpent provided the perfect means of celestial transport. The Late Postclassic Aztec plumed serpents would bear many diagnostic attributes of their Early Postclassic predecessors from Chichen Itza and Tula. While the plumed serpents from Uxmal, Chichen Itza, and Tula have prominent beards, by the Late Postclassic clear-cut beards had all but vanished (Nicholson 1987: 180-181). They retained full quetzal plumage and were rattlesnakes like their predecessors at Classic Teotihuacan. However, in many cases, they retained a floral tail with quetzal plume breath, a trait that is firmly rooted in Classic Maya depictions of floral breath. By the Early Postclassic, the plumed serpent has taken on both Maya and central Mexican traits and was closely associated with the sun and the Toltec warrior. Late Postclassic Aztec representations confirm that constant allusions were made to the style and function of the Early Postclassic plumed serpent. 118 Chapter 5: Agents of the Sun: The Itza Warrior Chichen Itza was a site heavily invested in the representation of the warrior. Whether depicted on benches, four sided piers, or murals, it seems that at every turn, there is an image of an individual dressed in warrior attire wielding darts and a spear-thrower. The images of warriors in stone sculpture, especially in plazas where they would have been on constant display, reinforced the warrior ideal (Inomata and Triadan 2009: 74). It need not be just images of warriors but also the product and outcome of what warriors do. For instance, Chichen Itza is unique for the number of skulls and skeletal imagery that is represented on such a large scale and placed in prominent places which would have been in public view (Miller 2007: 182). These war-related images would have inspired a “recurrent theme in daily conversations, figuring conspicuously in people’s consciousness” (Inomata 2014: 37). However, just because there was a remarkable amount of war and sacrificial imagery does not necessarily mean that there was an influx of these actual practices. Instead, these may have marked political and ideological changes calling for these visible representations (Miller 2007: 183). This may rest on an ideological model that is more Classic Central Mexican than Classic Maya. While the Classic Maya were known for depicting venerated kings and commemorating their victories in stone sculpture, Teotihuacan seemed to have lacked such aggrandizement, instead focusing on the image of the anonymous warrior (Stanton et al. n.d.). Chichen Itza seems to have employed a similar model where the image of the warrior takes precedence over monuments depicting rulers. However, unlike Teotihuacan, at Chichen Itza, many of the warriors are 119 accompanied by name glyphs. The warrior cult at Chichen Itza was a major component of solar ideology with roots derived from the Central Mexican cult of war, most highly developed at Classic Teotihuacan. It is likely that the warriors at Chichen Itza also believed in a solar paradise that was their ultimate destination should they fall in battle. According to the later Aztec: The brave warriors, the eagle-ocelot warriors, those who died in war, went there to the house of the sun. And they lived there in the east, where the sun arose. And when the sun was about to emerge, when it was still dark, they arrayed themselves, they armed themselves as for war, met the sun as it emerged, brought it forth, came giving cries for it, came gladdening it, came skirmishing. Before it they came rejoicing; they came to leave it there at the zenith, called the midday sun (Sahagún 1950-1982:6:162). These Aztec accounts describe the eastern solar paradise or flower world, the realm of heroic warrior souls and ancestors (Hill 1992; Taube 2004). In fact, certain aspects of Early Postclassic warrior regalia referenced this solar paradise including pectorals in the shape of butterflies, a blue bird worn on the front of the headdress, and tezcacuitlapilli mirrors representing miniature versions of the sun worn on the lower back. These elements comprised what Tozzer described as elements of Toltec or Central Mexican attire. In contrast, Tozzer (1930: 160) saw the Maya as wielding stone spears instead of spear throwers, mosaic masks, and elaborate headdresses. Most of the data Tozzer uses comes from the gold disks from the Sacred Cenote of Sacrifice where he believed violent acts of aggression were taking place by the Toltec invaders on the Maya and that these scenes usually indicated Toltec superiority. Morris et. al (1931) found Tozzer’s view on the art of Chichen Itza untenable, particularly his interpretation of the sculptures from the Northwest 120 colonnade where these authors felt the bound captives being depicted exhibited both “Toltec” and “Maya” characteristics. While there are differences to account for in some scenes, the majority of warriors pictured at Chichen Itza wear what might accurately be designated a “Chichen-Toltec” military outfit which includes a number of ornaments and insignia derived from both the Maya and Central Mexico. Like many things at Chichen Itza, the old is blended with the new and the local with the foreign thus creating new sets of imagery that are uniquely Early Postclassic. The Butterfly Chest Pectoral In an early study, Alfred Tozzer (1930) noted distinguishing characteristics leading him to believe he was looking at native Maya on the one hand and Toltec invaders on the other. Some of the accoutrements that Tozzer (1930: 158) pointed out as being Mexican were the mosaic crown headdresses, atl-atl or spear-thrower, a mirror worn on the lower back of warriors known as tezcacuitlapilli, and what he called “a highly conventionalized bird design” worn as a breast ornament. Much earlier, in a study of Chichen Itza, Seler (1902-1923: V: 273) interpreted these breast ornaments as plaques of jade mosaic, however, the remnants of polychrome paint still exist on many of these plaques and they are rendered in turquoise or the closely related Maya blue (Taube 2012: 125). The winged breast plate commonly worn by warriors in the Early Postclassic sites of Chichen Itza and Tula are comprised of turquoise tesserae. Despite being incorrect about these chest pectorals being made of jade, Seler (1902-1923: V: 298, 364) did correctly note that they denoted a butterfly. The butterfly chest pectoral alludes to warrior costumes of more ancient Teotihuacan (Taube 2012: 127). This was a major ornament associated with Toltec 121 warriors and is common in the art of Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula but absent for the Classic Maya. Warriors are seen wearing these butterfly plaques on their chests in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Fig. 5.1a). Carved pillars from the Temple of the South Ballcourt depict warriors wearing large turquoise butterfly chest pectorals (Fig. 5.1b). This device is common at Toltec Tula where the large Atlantean sculptures from Pyramid B display them on their chests (Fig. 5.1c). This butterfly device can also be affixed to the headdresses of warriors (Fig. 5.1d). A representation of a warrior from Tula depicts him wearing the large butterfly chest pectoral which is clearly meant to show the individual tesserae of a turquoise mosaic (Fig. 5.1e). This individual also wears the descending blue bird known as xiuhtotol on his brow. As first noted by Seler (1902-1923: I: 690; V: 274), the turquoise descending blue bird worn on the brow of warriors at both Chichen Itza and Tula is the lovely cotinga (Cotinga amabilis). The butterfly chest pectoral would be a common ornament worn by warriors in Late Postclassic Central Mexico. A Late Postclassic Aztec vase from Templo Mayor mimics the Early Postclassic Fine Orange style and depicts the deity Mixcoatl wearing the butterfly chest pectoral (Fig. 5.2a). Furthermore, he stands backed by a plumed serpent which recalls a major trope for Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula. In Late Postclassic Central Mexico, the fire god Xiuhtecuhtli frequently adorns this Early Postclassic device and also commonly wears the descending xiuhtotol bird element in his headdress (Fig. 5.2b). It is likely that Xiuhtecuhtli is modeled after a Toltec warrior with his butterfly chest pectoral and xiuhtotol bird on his headdress. In fact, Xiuhtecuhtli appears in the Late Postclassic Dresden Venus pages wearing a clear form of the xiuhtotol (Taube and Bade 1991). A pair 122 of large Late Postclassic incensarios depicting female warriors wearing these large butterfly chest pectorals indicate that they are perhaps Cihuateteo, the women of the western trecenas who were patrons of women who died during childbirth, an event equated with warriors slain on the battlefield (Taube 2012) (Fig. 5.2c). The goddess on the back of the Aztec Bilimek Pulque Vessel also wears the butterfly chest pectoral and has a knife attached to her arm recalling an image of a Chak Mool from Tula (Fig. 5.2d). The Bilimek goddess may be being shown as a defeated Toltec warrior. The mural from Malinalco depicts a procession of warriors wearing the turquoise butterfly chest pectoral (Fig. 5.2e). They also wear an interesting design on their lower backs which resembles a petaled flower. These disks, known as tezcacuitlapilli, constituted one of the major accoutrements of warrior attire and was one of the more recognizable representations of the sun. The Tezcacuitlapilli The tezcacuitlapilli, a turquoise circular mirror worn on the lower part of the back was one of the more common pieces of attire worn by warriors at Chichen Itza (Seler 19021923: I: 681). 12 The color of turquoise can be seen clearly when rendered in bas relief stone sculpture or in the murals of Chichen Itza and is quite distinct from individuals adorned in green jade such as the solar deity in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars mural. According to 12 In the Codex Dresden p.60 , a warrior wearing a tezcacuitlapilli uses a plumed serpent as a vehicle. Facing them is a Toltec warrior wearing the xiuhtotol ornament. In Mixtec codices, the tezcacuitlapilli is a highly venerated object. For instance, on Colombino 4, Lord Eight Deer travels with his sacred bundle and the mirror is carried on a tumpline indicating that it is one of the more important items of his accession to the throne of Tututepec (pers comm. John Pohl, 2019). 123 Taube (2012: 132), turquoise is a stone that relates to “warfare, fire, meteors, and the souls of heroic warriors and kings, much of which can be traced to still earlier traditions of Teotihuacan”. In one example of a floral back mirror from a stone sculpture fragment in the Initial Series Group, blue pigment could still be seen, indicating that these were painted blue to represent them as turquoise tezcacuitllapilli (Fig. 5.3a). A relief from the Castillo depicts a warrior wearing a floral petalled back mirror which underscores the relationship and interchangeability between the sun and flowers (from Seler 1990-96: 6: fig. 123) (Fig.5 .3b). While the circular tezcacuitlapilli mirrors worn on the back are widely known for Teotihuacan, the Early Postclassic versions of Chichen Itza and Tula were rendered much differently. As Coggins (1987: 461) notes, the pyrite mirrors emblematic of Teotihuacan warriors are smaller than the ones known for Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula. The tezcacuitlapilli replaced the Teotihuacan pyrite mirrors and were simply bigger and more elaborate versions of the older and smaller form (ibid; 464). While the Teotihuacan back mirrors are circular, the Early Postclassic back mirrors are often petaled and display solar iconography of Classic Maya origin (Fig. 5.4a-e). Solar mirrors or disks are of great antiquity among the Maya. An early form appears on Stela 4 from Late Preclassic Takalik Abaj where the solar disk displays clear yax markings and a k’in sign in the center being carried by a large plumed serpent out of a primordial pool (Fig.5.5a). A common motif on Classic Maya solar disks, the crenellated yax sign denotes ‘blue-green’ and ‘fresh, new’ (Houston et al. 2009: 40-41; Stone and Zender 2011: 123). Early Classic Stela 1 from Tikal depicts a solar mirror marked with the 124 yax sign with k’in sign recalling earlier Stela 4 from Takalik Abaj (Fig. 5.5b). A Late Classic cylinder Maya vase depicts a vision serpent carrying a large disk denoted by the yax sign in the mouth (Schele and Miller 1986: 308, pl. 120b). Notably, the fret nosed serpent appears on top of this disk, which may be a version of the serpent carrying the sun as a petaled solar mirror marked by the solar ). breath of the fret-nosed serpent. There is Classic Maya evidence to suggest that these solar disks were actually worn as back mirrors. On Yaxchilan Stela 11, Bird Jaguar wears a Late Classic tezcacuitllapilli on his back. The skeletal centipede heads radiating from the disk mark it as a solar back mirror (Fig.5.4e). A remarkable solar back mirror with yax signs appears on Caracol Stela 5 (Taube 1992: 195) (Fig.5.4b). Worn by a ruler, the frontal view depicting the two sides of this solar mirror are likely meant to give a view of what the mirror would look like if one were looking at it from the back. By joining the two sides together, the complete solar back mirror can be made out. Much like for the Classic Maya, the Early Postclassic tezcacuitlapilli was an important piece of warrior regalia because it represented a miniature sun. Tozzer (1957: 120) noted: The circular design divided into quarters on many of the back-shields and some of the rosette designs suggest, in some cases, the sun disk, as do the mosaic disks found as offerings in the Castillo sub and the Temple of the Chac Mool. Here also in each case are four heads of the god Xiuhcoatl. In other words, this was a small solar disk that the warriors carried on their backs. As Taube (1994: 234) notes “…by donning the turquoise and pyrite mirror, the Toltec warrior 125 supported the burden or office of the sun”. 13 An appendix in the Florentine Codex mentions xiuhchimaltonatimomanaz, turquoise shields in association with the sun: “The xiuh- means blue; chimal- means shield, that is, round; tonati- means the sun; momanaquiuh means it will come to emerge” (Sahagun 1950-82: 1: 82). The tezcacuitlapilli was one of the major attributes of warriors at both Chichen Itza and Tula. The Temple of the South Ballcourt at Chichen Itza depicts a group of warriors wearing large butterfly chest pectorals and the tezcacuitllapilli (Fig.5.1b). Aside from being widely portrayed as the attire of warriors, tezcacuitlapilli are also known from archaeological contexts at Chichen Itza and Tula (Acosta 1954: 38; Erosa Peniche 1939; Morris et al. 1931: 186-190) (Fig. 5.6a, c-d). 14 The tezcacuitlapilli from the Castillio-sub was found on a red jaguar throne which faced the back of a Chak Mool in the outer room with two more tezcacuitlapilli found in a cache having two large sacrificial knives. The Chak Mool from Sala 2 of the Palacio Quemado at Tula was found in front of an altar that had a cache vessel like the one known from the Castillo at Chichen Itza which held a tezcacuitlapilli (Acosta 1957: 147-154; Coggins 13 In many cases, mirrors represent the sun (Taube 1992: 192-194). Citing the contemporary Huichol equating the sun with mirrors, Carlson (1981: 125) identified Olmec concave mirrors as representations of the sun. Three Teotihuacan-type warriors from a cache in the Maya lowlands hold mirrors over their chests (Ball 1974: 8). If mirrors are associated with the sun, then the mirrors these figures hold over their chests and abdomens represent the sun as the axis mundi like that found on Xochiquetzal on Codex Borgia p. 44. 14 Archaeological examples of turquoise back-shield mirrors are also known in the Zapotec and Mixtec regions of Oaxaca, including a remarkable example from Tomb 1 at Zaachila. Copper back-shield mirrors have been found at Paquime and probably functioned in a similar way to the turquoise mosaic mirrors known for the Early Postclassic. 126 1987: 466) (Fig. 5.6d). The archaeological examples of turquoise tezcacuitlapilli from Chichen Itza and Tula are petaled which, along with their turquoise color, may denote the yax sign but may also represent a petaled flower (Fig. 5.5a-f, 5.6c). Late Postclassic examples of tezcacuitlapilli retain this petalled form (Fig. 5.5e-f). One of the main features of Early Postclassic tezcacuitlapilli solar mirrors are the four fret-nosed solar breath serpents that radiate from the disk. Acosta (1942: 129) correctly noted that these are Early Postclassic forms of the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl (Fig. 5.5d, 5.6d). This also holds true for a solar disk from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars which is striking similar to archaeological examples of tezcacuitlapilli, leaving little doubt that these are meant to be solar mirrors radiating four fret-nosed solar breath serpents, which are the most logical precursor to the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl (Fig. 5.6a-c). However, the Xiuhcocoa on the tezcacuitlapilli worn by the Atlantean warriors at Tula do not depict the fret-nosed solar breath serpent but the more grub-like form of the Xiuhcoatl. According to Matos and Solís (2004: 88), the turquoise tezcacuitlapilli would have been an easy object to transport from Chichen Itza to Tula: It was undoubtedly through these discs that the symbolism and worship of the sun were introduced into the Toltec culture, Thus, from the faraway Yucatan Peninsula, the new religious imagery first penetrated Quetzalcoatl’s city. It was later adopted by the Mexica, who took the ritual to its utmost expression, without straying from the basic design of reproducing the warrior deity onto a shimmering disc, complete with rays and thorns. This provides an intriguing example of cultural exchange and one mechanism through which solar ideology made its way from Northern Yucatan to Central Mexico during the Early Postclassic. While turquoise was not known for being a Maya stone, the solar 127 symbolism on these mirrors had origins in Classic Maya iconography and became slightly reinterpreted at Chichen Itza. This constitutes a fine example of Maya art being appropriated by their contemporaries in Central Mexico. Furthermore, the tezcacuitlapilli can be considered one of the more notable examples of the Early Postclassic International Style. Aside from Chichen Itza and Tula, they also appear on figures in the Grolier Codex, including a probable representation of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, ‘Lord of Dawn’ (Coe et al. 2015: 146-147). As an International symbol, the tezcacuitlapilli would leave an enduring legacy in the Late Postclassic. The Reclining and Flying Warrior The reclining or flying warrior is a major theme at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula and may have origins in Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics from sites such as Ceibal and Altar de Sacrificios (Fig. 5.7a-e). The flying or reclining warrior figures do not occur in the art of Xochicalco, Cacaxtla, or Teotihuacan indicating that they be of Maya origin. One of the main categories for Pabellon ceramics as defined by Adams (1971: 49) is that of ‘reclining human figures’. Many of these reclining figures are well armed holding spear-throwers and darts in their hand like the warriors at Chichen Itza and Tula. In her master’s thesis on Pabellon ceramics, Maline Werness (2003) relates these reclining figures to the Chak Mool sculptures known for the Early Postclassic. However, Werness sees the reclining figures and Chak Mools as representing defeated warriors and vanquished captives, an idea attributed to Mary Miller (1985). However, many of the flying and 128 reclining figures on the Pabellon ceramics are all armed with spear throwers and arrows and appear to be vivacious warriors rather than vanquished captives. While the Pabellon ceramics depict warriors in a reclining or semi-reclining position, another theme for warriors during the Early Postclasssic is their appearing weightless as if in flight. In Classic Maya art, the pre-eminent rain deity, Chahk, can appear floating or weightless. The frieze located on the north façade of Substructure II c-1 at Calakmul depicts Chahk in a weightless position indicating he is floating or flying in the sky (Rodríguez Campero 2008: fig. 3). On Altar O from Quirigua, Chahk rises out of a windy cave wrapped in a cloud scroll. Such comparisons can be seen on Ucanal Stela 6 where a warrior armed with his spear-thrower and darts is flying within a swirling cloud (Graham 1980: 2: 159). 15 The muyal cloud scroll is similar to the body of an undulating serpent and may be related to the various serpents, including one whose body is decorated with cloud signs, that warriors use as supernatural vehicles in Early Postclassic Mesoamerica. While Taube (2020: 175-178) has noted flying and reclining figures in Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics and Aztec and Toltec art, there are a number of these figures in the art of Chichen Itza itself. In the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars, one of three figures appear in the exact same reclining position found on Pabellon ceramics (Fig. 15 The flying warrior on Ucanal Stela 6 may be related to the sun god of Chichen Itza with such notable features being his youth, the beaded hair, and segmented jade headband. The eccentric fixed to the front of his headband and flaming torch emerging from his forehead may relate to him being the angry and warlike sun god. 129 5.8a). However, more than just reclining, this figure is also flying. In other words, the reclining position of these figures indicates supernatural flight as well. A stone block from Las Monjas depicts an excellent depiction of an armed warrior in flight. (Fig. 5.8b). Jade beads from the Sacred Cenote depict many examples of the reclining or flying warrior. One such image depicts an armed warrior with spear-thrower and darts whose body is extended in flight (Proskouriakoff 1974: 106, fig. 6) (Fig. 5.8c). Behind him is an individual sitting on a jaguar throne playing a conch. It may be more accurate to read the drawing of the circular jade bead as the warrior flying towards the individual playing the conch rather than away from him. The sound of the conch is what is conjuring this heroic warrior soul in paradise. Another jade bead depicts a warrior in supernatural flight holding a sacrificial knife (Proskouriakoff 1974: 106, fig. 8) (Fig. 5.8d). The flying and reclining warrior also appears at contemporaneous Tula (Fig.5 .9a). The Palacio Quemado depicts multiple representations of reclining warriors facing cuauhxicalli, vessels meant to hold hearts and sacrificial blood. On the Coatepantli at Tula, reclining Toltec warriors use plumed serpents as supernatural vehicles (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 88a-88d). A Toltec style collar-shaped pendant or oyohualli, depicts a Toltec warrior in the reclining position extending his dart out before him (Fig. 5.9b). He is in a similar reclining or flying position to the warriors appearing in the Palacio Quemado at Tula where the warriors appear before cuauhxicalli vessels and tezcacuitlapilli solar disks. The reclining or flying warrior theme continues well into Late Postclassic Central Mexico. 16 A The top portion of the Late Postclassic Aztec Motecuhzoma II monument, Metro’s Block, depicts an interesting scene of flying figures (González López fig. 6.306. a-b). These flying figures have their chests cut open with exposed hearts emerging from their 16 130 Late Postclassic Teponaztli drum from Morelos depicts a flying warrior appearing in Toltec attire (Fig. 5.9c). His position of flight recalls the warriors on the jade beads from the Sacred Cenote. A spear-thrower in the British Museum depicts a flying warrior with spear using a plumed serpent as vehicle (Fig. 5.9d). Two other forms of the reclining warrior at Chichen Itza deserve discussion. Reclining figures appear on the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars and on the facades of the Temple of the Warriors (Fig. 5.10). Notably, these figures wear goggles which perhaps indicates their role as warriors. These individuals hold torches which may relate to their role as fire priests (Klein n.d.). The relining position of these warriors on the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars is striking similar to another artistic form known widely at Chichen Itza—the Chak Mool. This is a major artistic form that Chichen Itza and Tula both share. They remain one of the most identifiable yet elusive enigmas in Mesoamerican art. In many ways, they embody a unique sense of sculptural materiality that is instantly recognizable yet their identity, meaning, and function are still debated. These figures occur most prominently at the sites of Chichen Itza, Tula, and Tenochtitlan but also occur as far away as Michoacán, Tlaxcala, and El Salvador. The Chak Mool can therefore be described as a stone sculptural tradition firmly entrenched in the Early Postclassic International Style of Mesoamerica. As Mary Miller (1985: 7, 8) noted, the Chak Mool does not appear at Teotihuacan, Xochicalco, or Cacaxtla. Miller (1985) argued that the Chak Mool derives chests. The cut scalloped convention on their chests is found with other Aztec representations of cut flesh, including the rim of cuauhxicalli vessels used to carry hearts from sacrificed warriors (Taube 2009: fig, 2, 3d-f, 7c). These flying figures are probably the souls of heroic sacrificed warriors in paradise. 131 from Classic Maya images of elite captives, with a later article arguing that the Chak Mool may represent the Maize God (Miller and Samoya 1998). Marie-Areti Hers (1989) has suggested that the origin of the Chak Mool can be found in the Classic Chalchihuites culture at the site of Cerro del Huistle, Jalsico. This argument has been accepted by some scholars, most notably by López Austin and López Luján (1999: 30-31, 143). However, as Graulich (2002) notes, the so called Chak Mool known for the Chachihuites culture may not even be a Chak Mool at all, leading him to conclude this was likely a Maya invention. Having some eighteen Chak Mools documented, the importance of Chak Mools at Chichen Itza cannot be overstated (Maldonado Cárdenas and Miller 2017). The Chak Mool most likely represents an Itza warrior (Graulich 1981; Miller 2018: 183), and the figure often wears the insignia of warriors. As Coggins (1987: 446) notes, the Chak Mools from Chichen Itza wear basic accoutrements of warriors including the butterfly chest pectoral. This can be clearly seen on examples of Chak Mool sculptures from the Temple of the Warriors, Platform of Eagles and Jaguars, and the Castillo-sub (Fig. 5.11a-b). For instance, the Chak Mool found in the Temple of the Chacmool displays trophy heads while the Chak Mool at Tula wears a knife on his arm (Miller 2018: 183) (Fig. 5.11c-d). Furthermore, most scholars now agree that these Chak Mools were used for heart sacrifice (Graulich 1993; López Austin and López Luján 2001; López Luján and Urcid 2002). As will be discussed in the next chapter, the Chak Mool are probably representations of heroic warrior souls in paradise. 132 The Tzompantli The Tzompantli skull racks are of considerable antiquity in Mesoamerica (Miller 1999). In Classic Maya art, there are a number of examples of leafy arbors that display human heads (see K3924, 5847, 3038; Taube 2003a) (Fig.5.12a). A stucco façade from Tonina depicts one such leafy arbor holding human heads amid frightening creatures known as wahy, grotesque animal spirits who personify nightmarish curses and diseases (Stuart 2020). Additionally, these leafy arbors are symbolically related to stone altars and low-lying platforms that depict skulls and cross bones. A number of Late Classic vases depict sacrificial scenes taking place on stone altars that lie directly in front of erected stela. The sacrifice of individuals on altars placed in front of stelae appearing in Late Classic vase scenes, likely took place on actual altars in plazas (Stuart 2014). The drum altars from the Northern lowlands that sit at the base of temples, had a similar function to the altars shown on Late Classic vases where sacrificial rites took place (Coltman et al. n.d.). The Northern lowlands depict some interesting examples of low-lying stone platform altars emblazoned with ch’een symbolism. I have argued (2018) that the Late Postclassic skull and cross bone motif was somewhat appropriated out of Classic Maya ch’een symbolism. Ch’een had multiple meanings but cross bones became an addition to the earlier iconography of cross bones and eyeballs (Coltman 2018: 207-211; Stone and Zender 2011: 157; Vogt and Stuart 2005: 52). Perhaps the best example is the Cementerio Platform group at Uxmal, where cross bones are intertwined and interwoven in a pattern mimicking a textile and appear with the disembodied eyeballs and skulls (Fig. 5.12b). An 133 almost identical altar is found at the site of Nohpat, which was originally seen long ago by John Lloyd Stephens in 1842 and sketched by Frederick Catherwood (Mayer 2010: 20, 22, 23; Stephens 1963: vol. 1: 223) (Fig. 5.12c). Karl Mayer (2010: 12) notes that Nohpat Monument 1, Panel 3, belonged to a destroyed platform consisting of bas-relief panels bearing cross bones and skulls. The platform blocks seen by Stephens and illustrated by Maler have been removed by looters (ibid.) Nohpat Altar 9 depicts several skulls and other elements that clearly link them to the other sculpted blocks that once formed a now destroyed platform located to the south of the Nohpat ballcourt. Structure 99 at Dzbilchultun depicts the skull and cross bone motif as well (Andrews 1962: 175, Fig. 12b). These altars from the Northern lowlands are likely precursors to the skull and cross bone platforms known for the Late Postclassic Aztec of Mexico-Tenochtitlan (Coltman 2018: 212-213) (Fig. 5.13a). However, I suspect that they would have functioned differently than the Classic Maya leafy forest arbors and Tzompantli which were both used specifically for the display of severed heads. As Michael Smith (2003: 185) notes, the sculpted stone platforms or stone effigy skull racks at Chichen Itza and Tenochtitlan have repeating images of skulls but lack the juxtaposition with cross bones that other altars at Tenochtitlan have, which may signify a difference in function. The El Corral phase altar from Tula also depicts the pairing of skull and cross bones, similar to the altars known for the Aztec but also for the Northern Maya lowland sites of Uxmal, Nohpat, and Dzibilchaltun. Reclining warriors using plumed serpents as vehicles appear on the north and south sides of the El Corral altar at Tula (Jimenez Garcia 1998: 255, fig. 106; 258, fig. 108). Cecelia Klein (2000) convincingly argued that the skull and cross bone altars from 134 Tenochtitlan were dedicated to the Tzitzimime and Cihuateteo, frightening female spirit beings who could cause harm as well as cure. It is possible that sacrificial rites also took place on the skull and cross bone altars. In the Codex Magliabechiano 88r, a frightening Tzitzimitl drenched in blood stands with arms raised in a menacing fashion on a skull and cross bone altar (Fig. 5.13b). Tlaltecuhtli could certainly be counted among the Tzitzimime and in Late Postclassic Central Mexico, this is the goddess who wears a skull and cross bone skirt most frequently. It is little wonder that she is the dark and devouring earth itself. In fact, the skull and cross bones motif may allude to both the destructive forces as well as the more generative ones like childbirth. As Aztec scholar Henry B. Nicholson (1971: 422) noted, “the earth is at one and the same time, the great womb and tomb of all life…”. The skull and cross bones skirt derived from ch’een symbolism is one of the more clear examples of the Aztec borrowing from Classic Maya predecessors. The Tzompantli at Chichen Itza expresses themes of militarism, decapitation, and the souls of dead warriors. The primary feature of this platform are the many skulls that appear stacked on top of one another (Fig.5.14a-b). Tzompantli in Nahuatl means ‘skull rack’ and the stakes driven through these skulls attest that this is indeed meant to represent a Tzompantli. The iconographic program of the Tzompantli changes as one makes their way by the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars. The theme becomes warriors wearing the typical “Chichen-Tula” attire of warriors surrounded by flames and holding, unsurprisingly, human heads (Fig.5.15a-d). They alternate with eagles clutching hearts in their talons. An interesting characteristic of many of these warriors is that they appear partially skeletal. According to Seler (1990-1996: V: 125), these skeletal warriors likely 135 represent the souls of dead warriors. Seler is most likely correct, however the flames and skeletal features may also represent the fiery metamorphosis of the warrior soul, the transformation of bodies by fire which then allows them transition to the floral paradise. Cremation was a preferred mortuary practice among the Aztec and there is evidence that cremation was a preferred method at Chichen Itza, perhaps marking a Central Mexican practice. Offerings 10 and 14 from the Templo Mayor are funerary urns of the “fine orange” type depicting Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl in military attire. The remains of two cremated individuals were found in the urns. In Mexica society, cremation was reserved exclusively for slain warriors and elite individuals (Chavez Balderas 2007). Chavez Balderas (2014: 177-180) confirms an earlier idea put forth by Matos Moctezuma (1989: 51) that these offerings represent the defeated elite Mexica warriors. The images of Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl are intertwined with a feathered serpent, a common theme in the art of Tula and Chichen Itza. Tezcatlipoca holds his darts and serpent spear thrower. Mixcoatl appears clutching a handful of darts and also wears the butterfly chest pectoral of warriors. These gods are clearly being portrayed as ancestral Toltec warriors in paradise. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli The themes on the Tzompantli platform at Chichen Itza closely relate to a being known in Late Postclassic Central Mexico as Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli ‘Lord of the Dawn’, a militaristic embodiment of Venus as morning and evening star (Coltman 2007, 2009; Mathiowetz et al. 2015; Seler 1904). One of the more important and widely depicted deities of Late Postclassic Central Mexico, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli was the stellar embodiment of the militaristic Toltec warrior (Coltman 2007: 73). He is frequently shown as heavily armed 136 and with skeletal attributes. An important account in the Anales de Quauhtitlan relates that Quetzalcoatl became skeletal in his transformation as Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli (Seler 1904: 360). In other words, Quetzalcoatl’s fiery immolation turned him into the skeletal Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the Lord of Dawn. At Chichen Itza, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is a taker of heads as can be seen on a now lost mural from the Temple of the Warriors (Fig. 5.16a-c). Here, the skeletal deity faces a large white eagle and holds heads as trophies which correspond to the theme of the Tzompantli. In the Late Postclassic Codex Borgia pp. 19 and 45, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli appears fully armed standing on a Tzompantli, which like his earlier representations at Chichen Itza seem to indicate (Fig. 5.17a-b). It is possible that the skeletal warriors surrounded by flames and holding decapitated heads on the Tzompantli of Chichen Itza relate, at least conceptually, to Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli. Most likely a product of the Early Postclassic, this being also appears in the Grolier Codex where the skeletal being also wears a tezcacuitlapilli mirror on his back (Coe et al. 2015: 146-147; Coltman 2007: 73). While he is widely known in the art of Late Postclassic Central Mexico, there is no evidence to suggest his presence at earlier Teotihuacan, Xochicalco, or Cacaxtla. The Toltec period rock painting from Ixtapontongo, Estado de Mexico, depicts a probable image of this deity with star sign and feathered serpent standing opposite the Early Postclassic sun god from Chichen Itza (Taube 1992: 136). A shell oyohualli attributed to the Toltec area depicts a likely portrayal of this deity as a skeletal being (Coe et al. 2015: fig. 22a ). The Toltec warrior theme surrounding this deity would continue with the Aztec where the Stuttgart Statuette depicts Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli as a skeletal Toltec warrior whose solar disk on his 137 back is carried by the plumed serpent, a reference to the ascent of the dawning sun out of the eastern sea and the symbolic burden of the Toltec warrior carrying the sun on his back as a tezcacuitlapilli (Coltman 2007: 73-74; 2009: 132). One of the more interesting elements of warrior attire at Chichen Itza is a three lobed star skirt. In one example from the Temple of the Warriors, a probable representation of a skeletal Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli wears the butterfly chest pectoral and lobed star skirt denoting him as a stellar warrior (Fig. 5.18a). The star skirt resembles the lobed wings of insects. In a study of the Aztec Stuttgart Statuette, Seler (1902-1923, III: 400) related the descending winged skeletal figures on the hair bands of the statuette to the descending figures in the Mitla murals who bore the same quincunx pattern on their faces. Seler identified them with the morning star and more specifically, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli (Fig. 5.18b). Furthermore, the descending figures on the Stuttgart Statuette and in the Mitla murals all have the same lobed insect wings denoting them as the winged insect warrior souls in the solar paradise. This is confirmed in the Mitla murals by the solar disk flanked by these descending insect warrior souls. The Mixtec Codex Selden p. 1 depicts 1 Motion and 1 Death, the Mixtec names for Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli and Tonatiuh, descending from a sky band armed and ready for war (Fig. 5.18c). Pohl (2005: 111) related this particular image in the Selden to the figures on the Mitla murals (Fig. 5.18d). It is clear that the Mitla descending figures represent the souls of dead warriors as insects in the solar paradise. What is significant about the figures at Mitla and the skeletal figures on the hair bands of the Stuttgart are the lobes representing insect wings., probably depicting these warrior souls as celestial butterflies. Stars also represented the souls of dead warriors (Krickeberg 1956: 138 148). Thus, the warrior soul could be related to both stars and butterflies but could also be a conflation of the two. Taube (2000: 325) notes that there is no contradiction in these two different soul forms for the stars could represent the nocturnal form of the butterfly souls and in Late Postclassic iconography, stars often depict wings, this convention being related to both the butterfly and star aspect of the warrior soul. These descending warriors are also indicative of the menacing Tzitzimime “star demons” who appear descending from the sky. On Codex Borgia pp. 49-52 for instance, four descending pairs of Macuiltonaleque and Cihuateteo descend armed with their weapons of war and castigation. In Henry B. Nicholson’s (1971) major study of religion in pre-Hispanic Central Mexico, he gives only the most scant and cursory reference to the Tzitzimime. It is significant that his short description immediately follows his MixcoatlTlahuizcalpantecuhtli complex. Nicholson (1971: 427) describes the Tzitzimime as both male and female, “…identified with stars, in the guise apparently conceived of as stellar monsters, the tzitzimime, fearsome death-demons who would ultimately destroy mankind at the termination of the current, fifth Sun”. Interestingly, Michel Graulich (2000: 172) sees the souls of dead warriors, stars, Tzitzimime, sky bearers, tlaloque and wind gods all intermingling, particularly during the night where “warriors became stars and tzitzimime, either as bearers of the celestial vault or as shooting stars when they descend on earth”. In Aztec thought, both the Tzitzimime and the souls of dead warriors could be considered as stars. When the Sun set into the underworld, the warriors became stars at night capable of transforming themselves into Tzitzimime (Graulich 2000: 170). These stars also represented the souls of dead warriors (Krickeberg 1956: 148). Boone (1999: 200) notes 139 that the Tzitzimime are already dead warriors and that is why they are occasionally pictured with their livers hanging out from a slit in their chest. J. Eric Thompson (1960: 86) noted that at Panajachel in the Guatemalan highlands, there was widespread beliefs that the souls of the dead not only become stars but at certain times return to earth as insects and that when a person dies they become a star: “The better the person, the bigger the star”. The Early Postclassic War Serpent and Apotheosis of the Warrior Soul Another common theme shared in the art of Chichen Itza and Tula is a figure which has historically been referred to as the “Jaguar-Serpent-Bird” (Tozzer 1957: 123). Schmidt (2007: 133) notes that there are eight of the man-jaguar-serpent figures on the Osario, which can be compared to others on the smaller Venus Platform, larger Venus Platform, Temple of the Warriors, as well as on the upper and lower registers of various standing relief pillars and jambs found throughout the site (Fig. 5.19c-d). Taube (1992c; 2020: 164166) has identified this composite creature as the War Serpent who has origins in the ancient art of Teotihuacan. Taube (2000) has also demonstrated that the Classic and Early Postclassic versions of this being are the ancestral form of the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl. At Early Classic Teotihuacan, the war serpent has more jaguar characteristics whereas the Classic Maya portray this being as more serpentine (Taube 2012: 119). In fact, as of yet, there has been no representation of the War Serpent found with a serpent body at Teotihuacan (ibid.). It is important to note that these figures at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula are more Central Mexican, that is Teotihuacan style, in that there is nothing serpentine about them and they appear to be more a conflation of feline and butterfly 140 forms. 17 Another important trait associated with many of these beings is the Teotihuacan butterfly nose ornament which can clearly be seen on examples from the Temple of the Warriors and the Venus platform (Fig.5.19a-e). These war serpents with figures emerging or peering out from the maw represent corporeal transformation and the apotheosis of deceased warriors (Taube 2000; Turner 2017). Taube (2000: 285-287) has argued that this creature is the Early Postclassic version of the war serpent or Xiuhcoatl with many attributes of the figure peering out being representative of Teotihuacan warriors. A Teotihuacan militaristic ideology was present in Late Classic Central Mexico. Turner (2017: fig. figs. 1, 2, and 6) notes a number of Late Classic war serpents that have deceased warriors in their maws from western Estado de Mexico. Butterflies appear widely on Teotihuacan ‘theatre censers’ which portray butterflies emerging out of fiery funerary bundles (Taube 2000). The Early Classic Escuintla censers depict themes of paradise and militarism, particularly in butterflies being related to the warrior soul (Berlo 1983; Headrick 2003; Taube 2000). George Kubler (1967: 9) noted that butterflies at Teotihuacan represent souls and that theater censers pertained to funerary rites. In a ground-breaking study, Janet Berlo (1983: 80) noted that a religious ethos based on militarism arose during the Early Classic period in Escuintla, Guatemala, which served as a Teotihuacan outpost. Berlo looked at figural incense burners as representations of deified warriors whose “symbols refer almost exclusively to motifs of warfare and a martial butterfly” (1983: 83). Following Berlo, Taube (2000) has shown that the butterfly Joe Ball (1974: 7) recognized that the figures now known as the War Serpent from Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula had an antecedent in a figurine from Teotihuacan. 17 141 frequently appears on top of the theater censer which may refer to the release of the butterfly soul from the burning body of the warrior. As Berlo (1983: 86) notes, the Aztec depicted flames in the shape of butterflies: “The butterfly with fire and with death revolves around the idea of metamorphosis: living warriors transmute into butterflies after death”. According to the Aztec: the brave warriors, the eagle-ocelot warriors, those who died in war, went there to the house of the sun. And they lived there in the east, where the sun arose (Sahagun 1950-82, bk. VI: 162). After four years, warriors transformed into birds and butterflies: they changed into precious birds—hummingbirds, orioles, yellow birds blackened around their eyes, chalky butterflies, feather down butterflies, gourd bowl butterflies, they sucked honey [from the flowers] there where they dwelt (Sahagun 1950-82, bk. III: 49). Diego Durán explicitly describes an altar textile within the warrior House of the Eagles, those destined for the solar paradise: above an altar there hung on the wall a painting done with brush on cloth: the image of the sun: This figure was in the form of a butterfly with wings and around it a golden circle emitting radiant beams and glowing lines (1971: 188). The account above describes the butterfly warrior soul in the house of the sun, the eastern solar paradise. Flowers and butterflies symbolize the souls of dead warriors and are also a common theme in Mixteca-Puebla style ceramics (Franco 1961; Lind 1994; Taube 2010). One of the best representations of warrior apotheosis can be seen on the Aztec Calendar Stone where two Xiuhcocoa frame the solar disk and meet head to head at the bottom where two skeletal individuals face each other out the maws of the Xiuhcocoa (Fig. 142 5.19f). Turner (2017: 63) relates the paired skeletal faces emerging from the maws of the Xiuhcocoa on the Aztec Calendar Stone to the earlier Ixtapan del Oro Monument 1, a Late Postclassic version of the transformation of the warrior soul (ibid.). The war serpent also appears as the lower register on the four-sided piers from the Temple of the Warriors where the descending sun god appears on the upper registers. In other words, the sun deity is contrasted with the War Serpent much like the Aztec Calendar Stone depicts Tonatiuh, Xiuhcocoa and warrior souls together. As Taube (2000) has noted, the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl derives from the War Serpent. Complicating the issue, however, is the Classic Maya solar step-fret breath serpent. The Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl may actually derive from the Classic Maya fret nosed solar breath serpent. We know from several depictions of Classic Maya solar disks and a solar disk from Chichen Itza that this being embodied a solar ray like those appearing on the tezcacuitlapilli known from the site. It seems that this being was quite distinct from the War Serpent known for Teotihuacan who appears frequently at Chichen Itza and Tula. With its feline characteristics, the war serpent has little in common with the fret nosed solar breath serpent. Following the Early Postclassic, the War Serpent may have become completely absorbed into the Xiuhcoatl which had always existed independently from the War Serpent both among the Classic Maya and in the Early Postclassic. In other words, the Xiuhcoatl may have never derived from the war serpent as both existed independently but following the Early Postclassic, the war serpent likely became absorbed into the Xiuhcoatl. This can be most clearly seen on the Aztec Calendar Stone where the warriors appear in the maws of Xiuhcocoa recalling the War Serpent from the Early Postclassic and earlier representations associated with Teotihuacan. 143 Conclusion The Itza warrior occupied a central role in the solar ideology of Chichen Itza. While the sun god was in many ways the warrior par excellence, it may have been the heroic warrior after which he was modeled rather than the heroic warrior being modeled after him. The Itza warriors carried the burden of the sun on their backs, a miniature, turquoise portrayal of the resplendent solar orb. Like so many things at Chichen Itza, the tezcacuitlapilli was a conflation of both central Mexican and Maya traits. Despite Teotihuacan also having back mirrors, the Early Postclassic tezcacuitlapilli derives from a Classic Maya convention, but one rendered in turquoise, a stone not known for the Classic Maya. While many representations of standing warriors are depicted on four sided pillars, other representations show them in a flying or reclining position, a common trope that may have derived from reclining warriors on Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics. Their weightless appearance as if in flight relates to them being in a supernatural state, most likely inhabitants of the eastern solar paradise, the afterlife destination of heroic warriors slain in battle or sacrificed. One such form, the Chak Mool was a reclining apotheosized warrior and was probably related to or even derived from the earlier forms found on Pabellon vases. Some of the major representations of warriors occur on the Tzompantli with its many stacked skulls and depictions of partially skeletal warriors holding severed heads, making a powerful visual statement. Likely related to the souls of warriors and Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the Lord of Dawn, the Tzompantli also depicts eagles and Jaguars clutching hearts. The theme then, is clearly one of war and sacrifice. It should be emphasized that the Tzompantli of Chichen Itza is remarkably different from the stone 144 platforms depicting skulls and cross bones known for the northern Maya lowlands and the later Aztec. Finally, a major expression of the warrior is found with the Early Postclassic War Serpent at Chichen Itza. The warrior soul appears in the maw of the War Serpent wearing the Teotihuacan butterfly nose piece. One of the more direct influences from earlier Teotihuacan, this being appears frequently on the lower and upper registers of carved four-sided pillars, the two Venus platforms, and on the Temple of the Warriors. 145 Chapter 6: Feeding the Sun: Heart Sacrifice at Chichen Itza Heart Sacrifice in Ancient Mesoamerica One view of human sacrifice is that it activates distinct states of being through the sacrificer’s attempt to manipulate the domain of death, which is a moment of transformation and perhaps creation (Swenson 2013: 34). In many ways sacrifice can bring order out of chaos or to put it more succinctly, restore order out of chaos. In other words, sacrifice can be a creative act. Such an example occurs on p.1 of the Codex FejervaryMayer where the creation of the world is denoted by a dismembered Tezcatlipoca cast to the cardinal directions with the fire god, Xiuhtecuhtli representing the sacred center. The topic of human sacrifice is widespread in Amerindian studies. There is little doubt that the sacrifice of human beings was common in ancient Mesoamerica although the practice has been widespread throughout the ancient world. In Mesoamerica, the Late Postclassic Aztec are generally accorded with the most extravagant sacrifices, which would have provided quite a frightening spectacle with bodies rolling down the steps of the Templo Mayor, a probable mythical reenactment of the sacrifice of Coyolxauhqui rolling down the mountain called Coatepec after being slain by her brother, the Aztec patron deity, Huitzilopochtli (Matos 1988: 39-42). While not as emphasized, the ancient Maya also sacrificed human beings and frequently engaged in warfare, a far cry from the Apollonian star gazers that J. Eric Thompson and other early researchers had once thought (Schele 1984; Robicesk and Hales 1984). One of the most gruesome and explicit scenes of heart sacrifice takes place on a 146 Classic Maya vase where a disembodied deity head consumes the insides of a prone victim, an event read as ku-pa-ja, kuhpaj, “he is being cut, sawed, sacrificed” (Beliaev and Houston 2020; K1377) (Fig. 6.1a). For the Late Classic Maya, the sacrifice of individuals on altars placed in front of stelae that appear in Late Classic vase scenes, likely took place on actual altars in plazas (Stuart 2014:fig. 2). In one vase scene, a sacrificial victim breaks the fourth wall by looking helplessly at the viewer (Fig. 6.1b). Two supernatural beings holding a Jaguar and a Macaw float around while presiding over the ritual. A stela decorated with an arrangement of cloth or garments and intertwined human body parts are depicted directly behind the stone altar. Stelae, like this one, were likely covered and uncovered for such rites (Houston 2016). An Early Classic human effigy censer from Tikal depicts a ruler holding a heart (Fig. 6.1c). The base of this incense burner is the sun god, K’inich Ajaw, the likely recipient of the heart held above. At Early Postclassic Chichen Itza, as with the later Aztec of Tenochtitlan, hearts and blood were offered to the bellicose sun god whose daily journey through the sky not only depended on but also demanded such offerings. Heart sacrifice was a creative act that invoked concepts of the world directions, centrality, and cosmic renewal. At Early Postclassic Toltec Tula, it is not Tonatiuh or a solar deity that seems to take precedence, but the ancient Teotihuacan god of storms, lightning and thunder, Tlaloc. Instead of identifying with the sun god, kings at Tula may have identified themselves with Tlaloc (Mastache et al. 200: 104, 125, 142). Tlaloc is a deity with deep roots in ancient Mesoamerica going back to the ancient Central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan (Pasztory 1974). Sometimes referred to as the Storm God, this deity is indeed a god of 147 storms, thunder, and lightning. The destructive nature of this natural phenomena is a fitting metaphor for the other major aspect of this being which is that of a militaristic devourer of blood. His martial aspect appears at Teotihuacan, in an aspect designated as Tlaloc B (Pasztory 1974). This militaristic aspect of the deity would be appropriated by the Maya of the Peten during the Teotihuacan entrada and would see a revival during the Late Classic (Stuart 2000). In the battle scene of structure B at Cacaxtla, warriors engaged in warfare adorn cutaway versions of the Tlaloc B masks with the goggles, fangs, and blood scrolls which are strikingly similar to the earlier Tlaloc impersonators known for Yaxchilan, Dos Pilas, and Aguateca (Helmke and Nielsen 2014: 28-30, fig. 2.7a-g) (Fig. 6.2a-b). While devouring blood is a common motif for this martial aspect of Tlaloc, in at least one instance his effigy appears with a bloody heart before him (Fig. 6.2c). At Copan, the mosaic facades of Structure 10L-16 are particularly rich with Tlaloc symbolism. The sculptural façade of Stair Block 1 depicts a huge central Tlaloc image appearing as a skull with hollow nasal cavity and fleshless upper jaw (Fig. 6.2d). As Taube (2004b: 285) notes, this Tlaloc image relates to war, sacrifice, and human trophies, and is similar to the Teotihuacan Tlaloc B who has bifurcated scrolls in place of a lower jaw which may allude to blood. Furthermore, the large skeletal Tlaloc head from Stair Block 1 depicts eighteen skulls surrounding it. As Taube (2004b: 285) notes, 18 is a significant number at Teotihuacan since it denotes war and sacrifice. Furthermore, the Classic Maya frequently referred to the Teotihuacan War Serpent as waxak-lahun u-bah chan “18 its head (or image) serpent” (Friedel et al. 1993: 308-310; Stuart 2000: 494). Stair Block 1 was the scene of fire offerings and one brazier in the form of a Tlaloc head water-jar may have been placed atop Stair Block 1. 148 While the actual act of heart sacrifice at Teotihuacan is not directly shown, a number of scenes certainly allude to it. Goggle-wearing warriors are frequently shown with large obsidian blades piercing hearts that are rendered with a tri-lobed sign for blood (Fig. 6.3). The tri-lobed blood motif appearing with pierced hearts is also shown expelling from the mouth as can be seen with the eagles from the Tetitla murals, which probably indicates the devouring of the heart. A Teotihuacan style incensario from the Tiquisate region of Guatemala depicts a probable version of the Maya sun god known for Teotihuacan with the tri-lobed blood motif before the face (Hellmuth 1975: pl. 37). The tri-lobed blood motif occurs frequently in the art of Tula, usually in front of the faces of eagles (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 92, 93, 94, 95a-b) (Fig. 6.4a). Since Chichen Itza depicts eagles clutching hearts in their talons, the trilobed blood motif at Tula refers to heart sacrifice. The motif also appears on reliefs from Pyramid B shown at intersections of three crossed pairs of darts (Jimenez Garcia 1998: 277-279, fig. 118-120). Keith Jordan (n.d.), expanding upon Kristan-Graham (1989: 11) notes that despite Tula being widely associated with human sacrifice in the literature, there is in fact no direct representations of human sacrifice at the site, something that is quite opposite from explicit renderings of heart sacrifice at contemporaneous Chichen Itza and Late Postclassic Tenochtitlan. Heart sacrifice is a theme on both the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars, Tzompantli, and Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza with eagles and jaguars clutching hearts in their talons and claws (Fig. 6.4b). The Images of predatory birds and mammals on the frieze reliefs of Pyramid B at Tula may derive from Teotihuacan (Cobean et al. 2012: 39). Recent research from the adosada platform attached to the front of the Pyramid 149 of the Sun, was decorated with sculptured marching felines who were engaged in eating human hearts and this may have been the origin of Early Postclassic images of apex predators devouring hearts (Sarabia González and Nuñez Rendón 2017: 66-67, fig. 7.6). As previously mentioned, pierced hearts appearing with warriors and eagles devouring blood are both themes at Teotihuacan. Stela 31 from Tikal is well known for its Teotihuacan iconography. The headdress carried by Stormy Sky depicts an eagle devouring a heart which anticipates such scenes known for the Early Postclassic (Coltman et al. n.d.). The theme of eagles devouring hearts and blood is also a theme known for Late Postclassic Central Mexico (Fig. 6.4c-d). On Codex Cospi, p. 7, an eagle devours a heart and blood out of a cuauhxicalli vessel, recalling Early Postclassic scenes of eagles clutching hearts in their talons (Fig. 6.4d). The Early Postclassic Origins of the Cuauhxicalli Heart sacrifice was a major theme at Chichen Itza, with the act itself shown explicitly as well as the extracted hearts. Some of the best examples come from the wooden lintel from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars which depicts three scenes of the sun god sitting opposite the plumed serpent figure with an offering vessel rimmed with eagle feathers and full of hearts placed between them. (Fig. 6.5). The sun god extends his spear thrower towards the contents of these vessels, which are Early Postclassic examples of the cuauhxicalli, an offering bowl widely known for the later Aztec used for holding sacrificial blood and human hearts (Hruby and Coltman n.d.; Seler 1990-1996: III: Taube 1994: 229;). The Late Postclassic Codex Dresden depicts the sun god sitting before a vessel full of hearts where the venal and arterial connections on the tops of the hearts are clearly visible just 150 like the hearts from the Chichen Itza wooden lintel (Houston et al. 2006: 123) (Fig. 6.6ac). Despite the first appearances of these vessels in the art of Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula, most of our information on these vessels comes from the Late Postclassic Aztec. The cuauhxicalli, or “eagle gourd vessel,” are semi-spherical bowls that were used as receptacles or containers for the extracted hearts and blood taken from sacrificial victims (Beyer 1921; Gutiérrez Solana 1983: 83-86; Seler 1902-1923: 2: 704-716; Taube 2009: 87106). These Early Postclassic examples from Chichen Itza and Tula depict them as “eagle vessels” with the eagle feathers decorating the rim of the vessel (Taube 1994: 229). Seler (1902-1923: 2: 704-716) identified a number of Aztec examples including a stone cuauhxicalli from Berlin which has a row of hearts lining the rim of the vessel (Fig. 6.7ab). Hearts and eagle plumes denote most examples of cuauhxicalli with an excellent example appearing on Codex Borbonicus p. 18 where the eagle plumes, hearts, and blood are all clearly visible. (Fig. 6.7c-d). Nelly Gutiérrez Solana Rickards (1983: 100-111) discussed multiple cuauhxicalli vessels noting many differences in form and iconographic content. In a more recent study, Karl Taube (2009) compared Aztec cuauhxcialli to Huichol and Classic Maya offering bowls, arguing that despite wide spacial and temporal boundaries, they shared a number of symbolic traits. Aside from being receptacles for sacrificial blood and hearts, these bowls symbolized the pivotal axis mundi, or sacred center. A major theme of Aztec cuauhxicalli vessels is a centrally located sun disk in the bottom interior of the vessel, the earth goddess, Tlaltecuhtli on the exterior underside, and the rim lined by any combination of hearts, eagle 151 feathers, and sometimes a scalloped-cut flesh convention (Hruby and Coltman n.d.; Taube 2009) (Fig. 6.7a-d, 6.8a-b). These receptacles mark a juxtaposition between the solar motif in the interior of the bowl with Tlaltecuhtli, the earth goddess on the bottom exterior (Nicholson 1967) (Fig. 6.8a-b). In an article on the Teocalli of Sacred Warfare, Emily Umberger (1981: 181-182) related cuauhxicalli vessels with Tlaltecuhtli on the bottom of the monument and the sun in the interior center to the Teocalli of Sacred Warfare where the monument depicts a prone Tlaltecuhtli on the upper platform and a solar disk in the region corresponding to the temple doorway placing it almost directly above Tlaltecuhtli (see Caso 1927: Figs. 46, 64). Umberger (1984: 72) notes that there is a cosmic tension between the sun and Tlaltecuhtli. Since the sun was thought to be devoured by the earth and reborn every morning, it is likely that Tlaltecuhtli on the Teocalli of Sacred Warfare may be giving birth to the eastern rising sun (Taube 2009: 92 ). The skirt of Tlaltecuhtli is sometimes depicted as a bowl decorated with skull and cross bone motifs (Coltman 2018: 214; Taube 2009: 92). The skull and cross bones motif can be traced back to Classic Maya conceptions of birth, caves, and primordial darkness, all fitting themes for a womb (Coltman 2018: 211-214). A Late Postclassic carved bone femur from Culhuacan depicts Tonatiuh drinking up a stream of blood from a vanquished Xipe Totec (Coltman 2007: 71: Von Winning 1959). While the sun deity is above in the celestial world, Tlaltecuhtli is pictured below clutching hearts in each hand and sharing in the stream of blood. Like cuauhxicalli vessels and the Teocalli of Sacred Warfare, this femur shows the juxtaposition between the solar deity, Tonatiuh, and the 152 earth goddess, Tlaltecuhtli. As Graulich (1988) notes, it was the sun and earth that both had to be nourished with the blood of sacrificed victims. Cuauhxicalli have also been linked to other solar monuments. One of the characteristics of a cuauhxicalli is that it is a bowl meant to hold liquid. According to Durán (1964:119), this depression may have been an important aspect of a cuauhxicalli Sun Stone: Once Huehue Motecuhzoma had determined that the stone in the likeness of the sun be carved for the great feast, the stonecutters were ordered to seek a great stone and carve upon it an image of the sun, hollowing out a round depression in the center. From the depression, which was to contain the blood of the victims, were to emerge the rays, so that this image of the sun could hold and rejoice in the blood. The Tizoc stone is a solar monument depicting the solar deity in a center depression of the disk with a carved ditch running from the center to the end of the disk. Graulich (1988: 400) argues that it is pre-Hispanic. Graulich’s evidence to support this comes from the account by Durán quoted above where streams of sacrificial blood flow through these channels. Other solar monuments with the solar disk carved on the surface may serve as a type of cuauhxicalli vessel. Nicholson (1995: 338) argues that the term included solar disks on the surfaces that were perfectly flat or small concave depressions in the center of the monument: The quadrangular monuments displaying solar disks on their top surfaces, such as ours, might also have been included in this category, with human hearts being placed directly on the disks, thus symbolically feeding the celestial orb that was believed to require this constant nourishment. 153 Cuauhxicalli vessels were intimately connected to the blood and hearts they hold. After the heart is removed from the captive during sacrificial ritual, “another priest comes, who places a reed in the wide opening where the heart has been torn out, fills the reed with blood, and likewise elevates this toward the sun as an act of dedication” (Seler 1990-1996: III:79). Metaphorically, the open wound becomes a cuauhxicalli. The reed, which serves as a dart-like straw is shown emanating from cuauhxicalli at both Chichen Itza and Tula (Fig. 6.9a-c). Furthermore, straws or darts stuck into cuauhxicalli would continue into Late Postclassic Central Mexico, sometimes piercing bloody hearts (Fig. 6.9e-g). The Northwest colonnade at Chichen Itza depicts warriors emerging out of the maws of serpents as they place their spearthrowers into cuauhxucalli offering bowls that have the darts sticking out of them (Jordan 2016: 257; Morris et al. 1931, vol. II: pl. 124125; Taube 2009: 103) (Fig. 6.10a-c). Like the sun god, these warriors come to receive the offerings of blood and hearts. The Northeast colonnade, like the Northwest colonnade, depicts warriors emerging from the maw of serpents with their spear throwers extended out to receive the offerings in the cuauhxicalli before them (Fig. 6.11a). However, there is one notable difference; the Northeast colonnade plumed serpents carry solar disks on their coiled bodies like those on the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Fig. 6.11b). This is referencing the plumed serpent as the path of the sun and relates it directly to the solar cult of warriors and consuming the contents of the cuahuxicalli. The spear-throwers that are commonly held by warriors in the art of Chichen Itza and Tula are used as straw like elements to ingest blood from cuauhxicalli offering vessels (Taube 2009; 2015: 117). This is the way the sun god of Chichen Itza consumes the blood 154 and hearts from cuauhxicalli (Fig .6.12a). Centuries later, in the Codex Borgia, Tonatiuh extends his spear-thrower towards a stream of blood and hearts to consume this precious offering the same way the sun god of Chichen Itza did (Fig. 6.12b). The straws and weapons that the sun god and other warriors use to drink the blood of sacrificial victims may allude to beaks and proboscis of birds and butterflies, creatures that symbolized the souls of warriors that reside in the eastern paradise of the sun (Taube 2009: 102-103). Furthermore, the descending sun god and warriors can be equated with birds who fly down to receive their offerings from bowls as shown at Chichen Itza and Late Postclassic Central Mexico (Fig. 6.13a-e). The sun god and plumed serpent figure at Chichen Itza do not have an antagonistic relationship but may be sharing this sumptuous feast in the cuauhxicalli that will sustain them on their cosmic journey with the plumed serpent serving as the daily path of the sun. Aside from the three scenes of the sun god and plumed serpent figure sitting together with a cuauahxicalli on the wooden lintel in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars, the south panel from the Temple of the Wall Panels depicts another version of the plumed serpent figure sitting opposite the solar deity within his solar disk with a cuauhxicalli vessel of hearts between them (Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 9) (Fig. 6.14a). Two more examples of the sun god and plumed serpent pair with cuauhxicalli can be found in the murals in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. In one example, a large sun disk is paired with the plumed serpent figure who is sitting down before a circular object and a vessel (Fig. 6.14b). Seler (1990-96: V: 111) noted that the round circular object was a sacrificial stone. More recently, Taube (pers. comm. 2018) has noted that the object in front of the sacrificial stone 155 and the plumed serpent figure is a cuauhxicalli like those known for the wooden lintel and the Temple of the Wall Panels. The other scene from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars depicts the solar figure in his floral sun disk with four radiating step fret nosed solar breath serpents (Fig.6.15). The plumed serpent figure appears next to him. Directly below the sun god is a large cuauhxicalli of hearts. If there was any doubt what the contents of the vessel was, the color painting by Adela Breton reveals the objects in the vessel being painted red. Once again, this is the cuauhxicalli vessel of hearts appearing with the sun god and plumed serpent figure. Despite being a creature of wind who brings the summer rains from the east, the plumed serpent at Chichen Itza was also a being of sacrifice. While the sun god may be considered the ultimate devourer of sacrificial hearts and blood, the plumed serpent figure is consistently present when the sun god appears with cuauhxicalli. Though not frequently discussed, the Chichen Itza plumed serpent may have been the conduit to which the sacrificial offerings were brought to the sun god. In other words, the sun god does not participate in the actual sacrifice but is the recipient of such offerings. As early as Classic period Teotihuacan, plumed serpents appear with hearts before their faces in acts of devouring them ( Séjourné 1959: fig. 132; Sugiyama 2000: 120; von Winning 1987: vol.1, 130-131) (Fig. 6.16a-b). On the North dais, Temple of the Warriors and the Northwest colonnade dais, figures with large feathered serpents stand before cuauhxicalli offering vessels with darts inserted in them, which are strikingly similar to the examples known from Tula (Morris et al. 1931: fig 257, pl. 124) (Fig. 6.17a). A similar scene occurs on a dismantled bench from the Initial Series where once again, two individuals with feathered 156 serpents flank a cuauhxicalli offering vessel with dart in it, with another cuauhxicalli directly above in between two serpents (Fig. 6.17b). Aside from depictions of the plumed serpent offering hearts to the sun god and appearing with cuauhxicalli, other scenes show the plumed serpent present during the sacrificial act itself. Part of the mural from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars depict a sacrifice taking place with a huge plumed serpent lurking behind (Fig. 6.18a). A similar scene is from the mural from the Temple of the Warriors which depicts the plumed serpent serving almost as an active participant or patron of the sacrifice (Fig. 6.18b). In these two scenes, the plumed serpent may be the waiting recipient of the fresh heart which will then be placed in a cuauhxicalli from which the sun god will consume the offering. The Chak Mool and Centrality As previously mentioned, the cuauhxicalli vessels at Chichen Itza have clear analogs at Tula (Tozzer 1957: fig. 676). In Salas 1 and 2 of the Palacio Quemado at Tula, reliefs of reclining or flying warriors yielding weapons and using snakes as vehicles face towards solar disks and cuauhxicalli offering vessels (Jimenez Garcia 1998: 159; Mastache et al. 2009: 306) (Fig. 6.19a-b). Like the warriors from the Northwest and Northeast colonnade at Chichen Itza, the warriors reach out with their spear-throwers to consume the contents of the offering vessel, which are likely hearts like the cuauhxicalli from Chichen Itza. Kristan-Graham (1989: 285; 2007: 564) notes that these reclining figures from Tula are not vanquished captives but are people of high status. Their reclining position is similar to warriors dressed in Toltec attire appearing on Terminal Classic Pabellon vessels (Fig. 6. 20c). They most likely represent the heroic warrior souls in paradise who ingest the blood 157 and hearts of sacrificial victims. On Codex Borgia p. 33, reclining figures placed within a temple strongly resemble the warriors from the Palacio Quemado (Matache et al. 2002: 126). This temple may represent the eastern house of the dawning sun. The following page (34) depicts a temple of the west with the Cihuateteo in the same reclining position as the warriors on p. 33 and from the Palacio Quemado. Indeed, this pose is not constricted to male warriors and appears frequently when women sprout the world tree from their abdomen in the Codex Borgia pp. 49-53. This semi-reclining pose is shared with one of the best examples of Early Postclassic sculpture; the Chak Mool (Fig. 6.20a-b). The enigmatic Chak Mool remains one of the more recognizable artistic forms of the Early Postclassic with Chichen Itza having at least eighteen known sculptures throughout the site (Maldonado Cardenas and Miller 2017). Virginia Miller (2018: 183) notes that Throughout Mesoamerica, chacmools tend to be placed in liminal spaces: at the crossroads of sacbes, on top of platforms, at the foot of stairs, before altars, or at temple entrances…They are therefore probably not foci of worship, but mediators in rituals, where offerings were placed temporarily as participants passed into the inner sanctum. According to Coggins (1987: 446), Chak Mools serve two important purposes: one that provides the locus for the drilling of new fire and the other being a personification of and possibly support for the heart sacrifices of warriors. The enigmatic Chak Mool sculptures known for Chichen Itza, Tula, and Tenochtitlan were indeed used for heart sacrifice (Graulich 1993; López Austin and López Luján 2001; López Luján and Urcid 2002). This is made all the clearer in an account from Fernando Alvarado Tezozómoc 158 (1980:515-516) which describes a Chak Mool used for heart sacrifice at the Templo Mayor in C.E. 1487: Luego que salió el Sol comenzaron a embijar a los que habian de morir, con albayalde tîzatl y emplumalles las cabezas; hecho esto los subieron en los altos de los templos y primero en el de Huitzilopochtli. . . Estaba parado el rey Ahuítzotl encima del téchcatl, una piedra en que estaba labrada una figura que tenía torcida la cabeza, y en sus espaldas estaba parado el rey y a sus pies del rey degollaban: arrebataban los cogedores tiznados como diablos, a uno, y entre cuatro de ellos le tendían bocarriba, estirándolo todos cuatro: llegado el Ahuítzotl... con el navajón en la mano: tirando reciamente los cuatro demonios, le metía el navajón por el corazón y saca el corazón en un improviso… There are two Chak Mool altars known for the Initial Series Group at Chichen Itza which are on the furthest east and west sides, forming a possible architectonic expression of heart sacrifice through the daily path of the sun with a turtle dance platform likely used for bloodletting sitting on the same axis making this orientation all the more striking (Taube et al. 2020). For Tula, Cobean et al. (2012) note the similarity between the Chak Mool and cuauhxicalli in the friezes and therefore propose the halls of the Palacio Quemado were related to sacrifice (Fig. 6.19a-b). Jordan (2020) argues that the reclining figures in Sala 2 of the Palacio Quemado represent royal ancestors facing cuauhxicalli. He cites a study by Javier Urcid (2010) which depicts supposed ancestors in recumbent poses at Formative Monte Alban. Jordan (2020) is correct in relating the reclining figures from Sala 2 of the Palalcio Quemado to the Chak Mools found in the same structure. The only intact and in situ Chak Mool from Tula was found by Acosta in Sala 2 of the Palacio Quemado. The clearest relationship between cuauhxicalli vessels and mirrors comes from Aztec 159 Chak Mool sculptures. Coggins (1987: 465) notes that “every carefully excavated Chac Mool was associated with Tezcacuitlapilli, or pyrite mirrors” (Erosa Peniche 1939; Morris et al. 1931: 186-190; Acosta 1954: 38). The tezcacuitlapilli from the Castillio-sub was placed on a red jaguar throne which faced the back of a Chak Mool in the outer room. Two more tezcacuitlapilli were found in a cache with two large sacrificial knives. The Chak Mool from Sala 2 of the Palacio Quemado was found in front of an altar that had a cache vessel like the one known from the Castillo at Chichen Itza which held a tezcacuitlapilli (Acosta 1957: 147-154; Coggins 1987: 466). A carved jade plaque was found within the stone vessel depicting a figure holding a circular element on his chest. This jade may be related to the Chak Mool and to concepts of sacrifice and centrality. Acosta (1957: lam.28) depicts a number of jade plaques with figures holding circular elements over their abdomens, most likely mirrors denoting the axis mundi (Fig. 6.21). Early Postclassic Chak Mools from Chichen Itza and Tula depict warriors in a reclining position while holding a vessel, and sometimes disk on their navels (Fig. 6.22 ac). As previously mentioned, excavated Chak Mools were associated with tezcacuitlapilli, pyrite mirrors (Coggins 1987: 465; Eros Peniche 1939; Morris and Morris 1931: 186-190). All of these images may very well establish the pivotal axis mundi. The sarcophagus lid of K’inich Janab Pakal, or Pakal, from the Temple of the Inscriptions at Palenque, depicts him in a supine reclining position with the cruciform world tree growing from his abdomen (Fig. 6.23). In one case, the blood from the victims open chest wound emerges as a flowering plant (Fig. 6.24). Clearly acts of sacrifice produce the cosmic world tree and express essential aspects of centrality. 160 On the North Temple of the Great Ballcourt at Chichen Itza, two women in the reclining Chak Mool position have two bountiful world trees sprouted from their abdomens (Fig. 6.25). At least two instances of figures in the Chak Mool position have a tree sprouting from their abdomen at Tula (de la Fuente 1988: fig. 113, 113a; Schmidt 2007: 143) (Fig. 6.26a-b). In a recent study of world trees, Karl Taube (2018: fig. 11a-f) has identified a number of reclining figures with world trees growing from their abdomen. On Codex Borgia pp. 49-53, five supine goddesses appear with directional world trees emerging from their abdomens (Fig. 6.26c). These five goddesses in the Borgia probably relate to sacrificial rites relating to foundation events, very much like what we see with the founding of Tenochtitlan on the back of the Teocalli de la Guerra Sagrada (Taube 2018: 287-288) (Fig. 6.26d). On Codex Borgia p. 44, a supine reclining goddess has a world tree grow from her sacrificed heart over a solar disk (Fig.6.27). A torrent of precious blood made up of flowers and jewels emerges as a descending bat descends to accept the offering. This scene is important in its detail for it actually indicates that heart sacrifice, the solar disk, and the world tree growing as the axis mundi were all conceptually related as part of a similar process of cosmogenesis. It is therefore likely that the supine and semi-reclined position of Chak Mool warriors were used in sacrificial rites of heart sacrifice where turquoise tezcacuitlapilli solar mirrors and cuauhxicalli may have been placed on the flat surface over the abdomen with the intentions of sacrifice producing a creation event, in this case, a reenactment of bringing up the world tree. As previously mentioned, most Chak Mool position their sacrificial bowls over their navel, or tlalxicco, as a direct image of centrality. The monumental Tlaltecuhtli monument 161 found in 2007 at the Templo Mayor depicts Tlaltecuhtli with a large hole in her chest with a line of blood that goes to her mouth as if she is devouring the blood from the open wound (López Luján 2010) (Fig. 6.28a). However, the open wound on Tlaltecuhtli’s chest denotes the scalloped convention of cut flesh that is also seen on cuauhxicalli vessels indicating that the open wound in her chest is a cuauhxicalli from which she devours her own blood. A closely related Aztec goddess wearing the same skull and cross bones skirt as Tlaltecuhtli, appears with a water mirror over her abdomen (Fig. 6.28b). Mirrors placed on the front of the body mark the tlalxicco or earth naval. Tlaltecuhtli frequently has a jade jewel placed in the middle of her abdomen, which concerns the heart and the center of the world (Nicholson 1967). Clearly the heart, jade disk, and conceptions of the earth navel or tlaxicco represented the central place or axis mundi. The Hotel Majestic monument depicts the birth of Tezcatlipoca out of a jewel symbol on the abdomen of the earth goddess, Tlaltecuhtli (Nicholson 1958) (Fig. 6.28c). Nicholson mentions that this convention was similar to a page on Codex Borgia p. 31 where a small skeletal demon figure emerges from a chalchihuitl opening in the chest cavity from which gushes a large torrent of blood (Fig. 6.28d). Nicholson (1958: 168) notes that heart and jewel symbols are closely related and even interchangeable. Furthermore, hearts were likened to “fine burnished turquoise” which may relate to turquoise mirrors ( Sahagún 1950-69: Bk. 6: 114-115). The Chak Mool tradition was one of the clear legacies from the Early Postclassic persisting well into the Late Postclassic. Miller (1985: 115) notes that discs, mirrors, or vessels can appear with Chak Mools and that in the three Aztec examples, they all carry cuauhxicalli. The two Aztec Chak Mool sculptures found in the context of Templo Mayor 162 reference Tlaloc, the god of rain and lightning who is of great antiquity extending back to Classic Teotihuacan. One of the Templo Mayor cuauhxicalli depicts a low-relief Tlaloc who appears with aquatic symbols carved on the underside. Miller (1985: 17) notes that: The chacmool can also be shown to have been associated with Tlaloc, but the Tlaloc is a Mayanized version, associated with war, sacrifice, and captives. In this way, a trace of Classic Maya iconography, as well as one of its forms, could have persisted into Postclassic times. The chacmool can thus be understood as a Maya sculpture, probably invented at Chichen Itza, based on Maya precedents, and perhaps stimulated to three-dimensional form through contact with Central Mexico. However, Umberger (1987: 77) notes that the association between Tlaloc and the Chak Mool in later times is most likely a Mexica invention. Indeed, there are no clear links between Chak Mool and Tlaloc during the Early Postclassic. However, because of the long legacy of Tlaloc as a militaristic being of war and sacrifice as Miller (ibid.) noted, it should not be surprising that he would appear as a Chak Mool holding a cuauhxicalli. The Sun as Devourer of Blood One of the forms of sacrifice described by Landa (Tozzer 1941: 117-118) for colonial Yucatan is that of scaffold sacrifice where the victim was executed by the shooting of arrows at his heart. In a number of Late Postclassic depictions of scaffold sacrifice, Xipe Totec is frequently shown as the victim whose precious blood nourishes the sun god. A cross from Topiltepec, Tepozcolula, Oaxaca, depicts the probable sun god descending as a warrior amid a stream of blood from a sacrificed Xipe Totec who is tied to a scaffold (Caso 1956) (Fig. 6.29a). The descending sun god recalls the descending sun gods from the Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza, the sun murals from Mayapan, and Tonatiuh in 163 the Borgia Group. A Late Postclassic gilded spear thrower depicts an image of the sun god drinking up the blood offering of Xipe Totec who is sacrificed upon a large petalled disk (Fig. 6.29b). On Codex Nuttall p. 84, Xipe Totec is sacrificed upon a scaffold with blood falling upon a tezcacuitlapilli, the petalled rim turquoise disks worn on the lower backs of warriors as representations of miniature suns (Fig. 6.30a). A similar scene occurs on Codex Becker p. 1, where once again Xipe Totec is sacrificed upon a scaffold with a torrent of blood falling upon a petalled rim turquoise disk (Fig.6 .30b). The turquoise solar back mirrors, tezcacuitlapilli, are being offered the blood of the sacrificed Xipe as if they were the sun itself. The sun after all, is one big solar mirror. It is likely that the Early Postclassic Chak Mool figures may have held such disks which were then offered the blood of the sacrificed. In Late Postclassic Central Mexico, the sun is often depicted with blood dripping from it. The Codex Fejervery-Mayer p. 33 depicts a large torrent of blood emerging from a solar disk (Fig. 6.31a). The Codex Borgia p. 48 and Codex Cospi p. 2 depict gouts of blood with a dart piercing a heart (Fig. 6.31b-c). An omichicahuaztli made out of a human femur published by Hasso von Winning (1959) shows Tonatiuh facing down from his solar disk devouring the rising blood of a sacrificed Xipe Totec (Coltman 2007: 71) (Fig. 6.32a). The bottom part of the scene depicts Tlaltecuhtli clutching hearts and sharing in the devouring of blood. This is an interesting juxtaposition between the sun god and earth deity that is reflective of cuauhxicalli with the sun in the interior and Tlaltecuhtli on the bottom exterior of these offering vessels (ibid.). For the Late Postclassic Aztec, the offering of blood and hearts mentions not just the sun god, Tonatiuh, but also Tlaltecuhtli. 164 While there are plenty representations of Tonatiuh with hearts and blood, not all blood for the sun god came from heart sacrifice. A Late Postclassic carved bone depicts Tonatiuh sitting in his solar disk using his dart as the symbolic straw he uses to drink up the blood offering of Ahuitzotl (Cepeda Cardenas 1968; Matos and Solis 2004: 93; Nicholson 2005: 75) (Fig. 6.32b). On Codex Borgia p. 75, Tonatiuh devours the blood from an individual piercing their ear. Among the Aztec, penitential bloodletting was performed in honor of the sun for the date Nahui Ollin, or 4 Motion, which was the calendrical name of the sun god Tonatiuh (Durán 1971:191; Sahagún 1950-1982:Book 2:216-217). Sahagún (1950-1982: Book 2:204) notes that in Aztec ritual, penitential bloodletting was an offering to the sun: The nourishing was thus done. When the ear [lobes] were cut, they spattered the blood upward or they sprinkled it into the fire. Thus, it was said, they nourished the fire and the sun. As late as the colonial period, the Mapa de Cuauhtinchan depicts individuals holding hearts towards the sun with a stream of blood forming a path between the heart leading directly to the sun (Fig. 6.32c-d). This trail of blood is very similar to the blood extending to 1 Death, the Mixtec equivalent of Tonatiuh, in the Codex Vindobonensis (Fig. 6.33). Such large streams of blood also occur on the scaffold sacrifice scenes. On Codex Selden A fol. 12, the sun god is brought blood and hearts by a Xiuhcoatl and eagle. On Codex Borgia p. 59, Tonatiuh accepts the blood and heart offering from a solar disk within a temple. Like the solar deity of Chichen Itza, he uses his spear thrower to consume the offering. 165 Sacrifice on the Gold Disks from the Sacred Cenote A number of gold disks found in the Sacred Cenote portray themes of sacrifice and militarism with warriors using serpents as vehicles to receive the offerings of blood and hearts from the sacrificial events taking place. Disk H (Lothrop 1952: fig. 1) depicts one of the most explicit acts of human sacrifice (Fig. 6.34). Four individuals hold down the victim who is laid out upon a stone as his chest is cut open and heart extracted. Fray Diego de Landa (1941: 118-119) describes this method of heart sacrifice in vivid detail: If the heart of the victim was to be taken out, they led him with a great show and company of people into the court of the temple, and having smeared him with blue and put on a coroza, they brought him up to the round altar, which was the place of sacrifice, and after the priest and his officials had anointed the stone with a blue color, and by purifying the temple drove out the evil spirit, the Chacs seized the poor victim, and placed him very quickly on his back upon that stone, and all four held him by the legs and arms, so that they divided him in the middle. At this came the executioner, the Nacom, with a knife of stone, and struck him with great skill and cruelty a blow between his ribs of his left side under the nipple, and he at once plunged his hand in there and seized the heart like a raging tiger and snatched it out alive and, having placed it upon a plate, he gave it to the priest, who went very quickly and anointed the faces of that idol with that fresh blood. This statement by Landa describes four Chacs who hold the victim down as the Nacom performs the actual sacrifice. Another priest mentioned by Landa was offered the heart of the victim and was named Ah Kin “he of the Sun” (Tozzer 1941: 27 n. 148, n. 543): And they took out their hearts and gave them to the ah-kin, Francisco Uicab, who burned them and worshipped the idols with it (them?) and smeared the blood of it (them?) on the idols…And the sacrifice having been made, they took the boys to bury (them) behind the churchyard” ibid; 119, n. 543 ). 166 The sacrifice described by Tozzer, forms a cosmogram with sacrifice being an act of cosmogenesis. Graulich (1988: 394) notes an account in Durán describing a vivid account of Aztec heart sacrifice: They seized the victims one by one, one by one foot, another by the other, one priest by one hand, and another by the other hand. The victim was thrown on his back, upon the pointed stone, where the wretch was grabbed by the fifth priest, who placed the yoke upon his throat. The high priest then opened the chest and with amazing swiftness tore out the heart, ripping it out with his own hands. Thus steaming, the heart was lifted toward the sun, and the fumes were offered up to the sun. Like the account by Landa describing heart sacrifice among the Maya, this Aztec account makes reference to the quadripartite nature of the sacrificial victim where the victim becomes a sacrificed cosmogram. Aside from the positioning of the victim and the priests holding down limbs and creating one cosmogram, there was also another involving the heart itself. According to the 1562 account of Juan Couoh, a native priest gave him “two cuts in the form of a cross” across “the point of” a freshly excised human heart (Tozzer 1941: 118, n. 541). Taube (2009) notes this is similar to Piedras Negras Stela 11 where the flower-like form in the chest of the victim is the heart sliced crossways with a knife sticking out of the center. Another example comes from Altar 4 of El Cayo where a sacrificial knife penetrates a heart cut crosswise on the upper surface (ibid.). As Taube (2009: ) notes “cutting of a cross atop a heart is another ritual statement of centrality, the creation of the four quarters and world center”. Disk H reveals another important theme common for the Early Postclassic. The scene above depicts an undulating rattlesnake whose body is marked with cloud signs. A warrior emerges from the maw of the serpent and extends his spearthrower out to receive 167 the offering of the freshly removed heart. This scene has direct parallels from the Northwest and Northeast colonnade where warriors emerge from the maws of serpents and extend their spear throwers towards cuauhxicalli vessels. Such images also recall the Sun God on the wooden lintel who stretches his spear thrower out towards the cuauhxicalli filled with hearts. With the butterfly chest pectoral and headband, the figure emerging from the maw of this cloud serpent looks like many of the Chak Mool figures known from around the site who are dressed in the attire of warriors. A similar scene is found on a gold disk from Texmilican, Guerrero, where figures emerge from the maws of cloud serpents with their spear throwers, recalling the scene from Disk H and the Northwest and Northeast colonnade scenes (Lothrop 1952: fig. 4). Disk B depicts a warrior in Toltec attire including a large butterfly chest pectoral flying on a partially visible serpent (Lothrop 1952: fig. 30) (Fig. 6.35). He extends his atl-atl down to the scene below where there is a bound captive. The scene clearly depicts the warrior arriving to consume the blood and heart from the sacrifice about to occur. Disk E depicts a figure in Toltec attire who wields his spear back ready to thrust it into an unfortunate victim (Lothrop 1952: fig. 33) (Fig. 6.36). We cannot see the intended victim, but it is quite clear there is one. This is made all the clearer by the partial figure seen above. While only the legs are visible, they are in a reclining position on a plumed serpent that serves as his vehicle. These flying warriors recall the flying warriors depicted on the jade beads found in the Sacred Cenote and the flying warriors from the Palacio Quemado at Tula. To bring this chapter full circle, Disk L and Disk M depict eagle warriors about to pluck the hearts from the chest of their victims (Lothrop 1952: fig. 41, 42). These scenes 168 correspond to the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars and the Temple of the Warriors facades where eagles clutch hearts with their talons. These also correspond to the Aztec military orders of eagle and jaguar knights. However, evidence from earlier Teotihuacan show that these apex predators were considered heart-taking warriors well before the rise of Early Postclassic Chichen Itza and Tula. Conclusion Heart sacrifice in ancient Mesoamerica constituted the ultimate act of cosmogenesis as it renewed and sustained the world. For Swenson (2013: 31), the spectacle of sacrifice animates culturally specific categories of power such as cosmological, social, and natural orders. Indeed, heart sacrifice constituted one of the most basic yet fundamental tenets of Mesoamerican ritual practice with the act itself being both cosmological and political, at least when in public view. Swenson (2013: 44) states that violent religious spectacles …should be understood not simply as epiphenomenal pageantry, tactics of terror or intimidation, which shored up coalescing hierarchial polities; instead, sacrificial performances seem to have played a key role in the actual institutionalization and embodied realization of power asymmetries characteristic of variably structured states in different regions of the world. This statement finds firm grounding in the large-scale public display of human sacrifice we know for the Aztec. If we were to judge on the art alone, Chichen Itza would be a worthy predecessor. Human sacrifice in ancient Mesoamerica seems to have undergone a change where the narrative shifted from the ruler and his captive to more of an institutional version that legitimizes states (Demarest 1984). This change is best reflected in the Classic Maya and Late Postclassic Central Mexico where the Classic Maya focused on individual 169 leadership and personal power while the Late Postclassic Aztec elevated the role of sacrifice to one where the leadership was conscious in the ideological weapon they wielded and the major role it played in state policy (ibid; 237). I strongly suspect this was the model for human sacrifice at Chichen Itza, a site that was innovative and preceded these practices in the later Postclassic. While earlier views of the ancient Maya held them as peaceful Apollonian stargazers, advances in epigraphy and iconography over the last forty years has shown the Maya to have been fully engaged in both warfare and human sacrifice (Schele and Miller 1986). However, a major theme of heart sacrifice represented at Teotihuacan, Tula, and Late Postclassic Central Mexico pertains to apex predators clutching hearts in their paws or talons. This theme is generally absent among the Classic Maya and seems to be firmly rooted in Classic Central Mexico. These early versions of such ferocious animals may have anticipated the later Aztec Eagle and Jaguar military orders. While sacrifice was practiced widely across ancient Mesoamerica, Chichen Itza, like Late Postclassic Central Mexico, has some of the most vivid depictions of the actual act itself with much consistency in who receives such offerings. The sun god is shown as the ultimate receiver of such precious gifts, given to him by the plumed serpent at Chichen Itza. The heroic souls of warriors appear very much like the sun god himself, feeding on hearts and blood from cuauhxicalli vessels and using serpent vehicles as their means of supernatural transportation. The Chak Mool are most likely representations of these heroic warrior souls like those emerging from plumed serpents to receive their offerings from the cuauhxicalli on the Northwest and Northeast colonnade and the gold disks from the Sacred 170 Cenote. While there is no identifiable sun god at Tula aside from the Ixtapantongo rock painting, the Palacio Quemado at Tula reflects themes of solar ideology shared with Chichen Itza. Such scenes depict reclining warriors facing cuauhxicalli alternating with solar disks. Like the examples from the Northwest and Northeast colonnades at Chichen Itza, the warriors at Tula come for the blood and hearts held in cuauhxicalli. The cuauhxicalli, tezcacuitlapilli, and reclining warriors are all part of one thematic program relating to heart sacrifice and the solar cult of war and comprises one of the more solid ideological relationships shared between Chichen Itza and Tula. 171 Chapter 7: Chichen Itza as Paradise Chichen Itza may have been the quintessential “City of the Sun” in Early Postclassic northern Yucatan and seen as such by other civilizations in Western Mesoamerica. Almost directly due east of Tula, Chichen Itza occupied both a geographic and symbolic locale. The east was a direction from which the rain bringing winds came and from where the dawning sun rose daily, fresh and new, from the Caribbean Sea. Arthur Miller (1974: 46) recognized the importance of the eastern Caribbean shores of Quintana Roo: The Tulum-Tancah area of the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula facing the eastern sea we now call the Caribbean should be, according to any dualistic system, an area suggesting birth and rebirth. The birth and rebirth from the eastern sea pertains to the daily ascent and descent of the sun. A word for a body of water, nahb, when paired with the term for fire becomes sea and reads “fiery pool”, k’ahk’nahb which refers to the daily event of the sun rising out of the Caribbean seas (Houston 2010: 73). As Taube (1994: 224-5) has shown, the east was associated with the land of the Maya. In the Borgia Group for instance, jade and quetzal birds are frequently identified with directional temples and trees of the east indicating that the geographic direction was the source of these precious and highly esteemed goods. Furthermore, the east was the destination of Quetzalcoatl where he cremated himself and transformed into the ‘Lord of the Dawn’, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli (Bierhorst 1992: 36). 172 Chichen Itza would not have been the only “City of the Sun” as this likely changed much like the complicated concept of Tollan having multiple locations. As an example, Early Classic Teotihuacan in the Escuintla region of south coastal Guatemala would have been an eastern paradise identified with jade, quetzals, and cacao. A fragment of a carved vase from Teotihuacan depicts a blowgunner hunting quetzal birds in a cacao tree (Coe and Coe 1996: 54) (Fig. 7.1). In time, this paradise in the rich and tropical cacao growing region of Escuintla shifted northward to Yucatan during the Early Postclassic (Taube 2020). If Chichen Itza was paradise, whose paradise was it and what kind of factors would have characterized it? As this dissertation has shown, paradise is largely conceived around the sun god and the solar cult of warriors who were agents of the sun. Chichen Itza, like Teotihuacan before, and Aztec Tenochtitlan after, utilized the ideology of paradise to solidify the importance of the warrior and entice warriors to participate in a system where the warrior’s soul was promised the riches and bounty of the solar paradise. The warrior, like the sun god, was celebrated in a system that saw war and sacrifice as central to maintaining cosmic order and equilibrium in the cosmos. I would agree with Headrick (2003: 162), who notes “that butterfly imagery at Teotihuacan functioned as a propagandistic tool to motivate the people into war by holding out the carrot of a pleasurable afterlife”. Certainly, such paradisiacal rewards were promised to the later Aztec. In a discussion of the Sixteenth century Malinalco murals, Peterson (1993: 147-149) discusses the incentives of paradise: The propagandistic use of a celestial destiny by the Aztecs is apparent in that it was held out as a coveted prize to those who displayed loyalty to the governing elite. Public laments were staged for those Aztecs killed on the 173 battlefield; paens were given to the fallen with promises that their souls would accompany the gods. More than likely, these same incentives enticed the warrior at Chichen Itza. Other incentives for sustaining paradise on earth is through wealth. In the case of Chichen Itza, this would have been built around trade, most likely in cacao with the South Pacific Coast of Guatemala where the solar paradise was also a major theme. In a ground-breaking study, Jane Hill (1992) discussed a floral paradise she referred to as Flower World, a realm imbued with iridescent color and beauty, home to the sun and ancestors invoked largely through song. Hill noted that Flower World was particularly present among Uto-Aztecan speakers such as the Hopi of Arizona and Nahuatl speaking people including the Aztec. This solar paradise is characterized by flowers, jewels, and other precious objects as well as music and dance and is one of the major themes in the art of Chichen Itza. Flower Mountain at Chichen Itza In a number of studies, Taube (2004, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2020) has shown that one of the primary identifiers of the Flower World Complex is expressed in a floral mountain that serves as the abode of heroic kings, warriors, and ancestors. While there continues to be widespread belief that the long snouted Puuc style masks at Chichen Itza are the rain deity, Chahk (Seler 1902-1923, IV: 209-210), recent work has shown that these are actually more closely related to the Cauac Monster whose heads appear on the corners of Chenes, Rio Bec, and Puuc structures (Baudez 1999: 57). Further research (Taube 2004) has shown that these are actually witz ‘mountain, hill’, which also occur on Copan Temple 22 and in other architecture from the Yucatan peninsula. 174 While there are no actual mountains at Chichen Itza or the vicinity—Landa referred to it as the “least earth” (Tozzer 1941: 186) --, there are a number of architectural mountains that represent Flower Mountain. Flower Mountain is identifiable on Pucc facades and on basal registers from Chichen Itza with one of the primary diagnostic elements designating these witz as Flower Mountain being a segmented headband with a single flower motif in the center (Taube 2004: 86-87; Taube 2020: 158-164) (Fig. 7.2a-d). This headband occurs with one other being at Chichen Itza—that of the avian wind god, an early form of the Late Postclassic Ehecatl. In a recent reinterpretation of the Osario at Chichen Itza, Annabeth Headrick (2018) interprets the temple as a representation of Flower Mountain. Indeed, the Osario pyramid represents an excellent example of Flower Mountain. Stacked witz heads wearing the flower head band can be found at the Osario as well as at the INAH camp onsite. The theme of Flower Mountain extends well past the Osario itself and into the temple of Xtoloc, a small temple with columns representing bas-relief sculpture sitting right above the cenote. Twelve witz appear on basal registers wearing segmented head bands with a single flower on the brow identifying them all as Flower Mountain (Fig. 7.2d). Mountains wearing the floral head band also occur on the Temple of the Warriors, essentially marking this structure as a Flower Mountain (Fig. 7.3a). Interestingly, the other major visual statement on the building is that of the War Serpent with an individual emerging from the maw wearing the Teotihuacano butterfly nose ornament. These figures also appear on the base of the Temple of the Warrior columns. The contrast between Flower Mountain and the War Serpent on the Temple of the Warriors emphasizes the themes of both paradise and warfare. The pairing can also be found on pillars from the Northeast 175 colonnade where Flower Mountain appears on the upper register with the War Serpent forming the base (Fig. 7.3b). Such an occurrence occurs much earlier at Classic Teotihuacan where one of the more obvious examples of Flower Mountain occurs with the Temple of the Feathered Serpent (Fig. 7.3c). The plumed serpents on this building emerge through petaled disks and carry the War Serpent headdress on their backs. In other words, the plumed serpent carries the burden or office of war, not unlike the examples of Early Postclassic plumed serpents who appear with armed warriors and the warlike and bellicose sun god. While there has yet to be a specific sun god identified for Teotihuacan, the Feathered Serpent Pyramid at Teotihuacan was remembered by the Aztec as being associated with the sun. Depicted on the 1560 San Francisco Mazapan map of Teotihuacan (Arreola 1922), this map depicts the Feathered Serpent Pyramid with a “European-style sun disk, complete with rays and frontal face” (Boone 2000:373). Arreola (1922:555; English translation by Boone 2000:373) translated the Nahuatl text as “place of burials in honor of the sun” suggesting that the Late Postclassic Aztec may have been aware of the sacrificed warriors underneath the pyramid (Sugiyama 1989). Since the Aztec looked to Teotihuacan as a fountain of ideological inspiration (Boone 2000; López Luján 1989), the pyramid may have been venerated as a Flower Mountain, the eastern solar floral paradise where the souls of warriors who died in battle reside in the afterlife. Flowers in Material Culture In a study of material culture in the Flower World, Hays-Gilpin and Hill (1999) note that the Flower World complex is not necessarily a religion or cult but one component of ideology that drew upon the available symbol system. In the American Southwest for 176 instance, flower symbolism appears on Anasazi, Hohokam pottery, and Mimbres black on white bowls (Hays-Gilpin and Hill 1999: fig. 1a-b, fig. 2a-f). Flower symbolism would further be elaborated on at Chaco Canyon, Kayenta, and Pueblo IV period murals (HaysGilpin and Hill 1999: 15). As with the American Southwest, the most pervasive and obvious symbol denoting the Flower World are flowers themselves. Pottery from the Initial Series Group depicts floral motifs that are similar to the flowers appearing on the facades (Fig. 7.4a-c). Flowery metaphors were often expressed with the Mesoamerican ruler adorning their bodies with floral emblems such as jade jewelry taking on floral forms (Houston and Cummins 2004: 367; Proskouriokoff 1974: pl.40; Taube 2005) (Fig.7.5). At Chichen Itza, quetzal plumes represent the breath or aroma of blossoming flowers, which is a Classic Maya convention (Fig.7.6a-c). The Flower World is also characterized by scent—the sweet aroma and fragrance of flowers and incense. Greek and Roman gods were believed to exhale the sweet fragrant scent of ambrosia which influenced Christian concepts of the “odor of sanctity”. The divine fragrance or odor of sanctity –the breath of God-- made the presence of god known and those that were pious would be infused with the divine scent (Classen 2006). Iconographic studies of paradise have benefitted tremendously from recent archaeological investigations at Chichen Itza (Schmidt 2003; Taube et al.2020). Many of these iconographic programs can be linked to specific architectural groups (Schmidt 2007: 118). Castillo Viejo and the nearby Initial Series Group reveal carved flowers, vines, beautiful birds, and other precious objects that represent a flowery paradise that is the abode of the ancestors (Fig. 7.7). One phrase of each text from the Castillo Viejo reads u baah u 177 nikte’ u mam “it is the image of the flowers of his grandfather”. The flowery vines are a likely metaphor for the ancestors that inhabit the flowery paradise which is the abode of ancestors (Schmidt et al. 2008: 7). There are a number of flowering plants and blossoming vines, some of which occur with birds and butterflies at Chichen Itza (Taube 2020: 168). Upon entering the Temple of the Warriors, one is framed by blossoming vines (Taube et al. 2020). At the House of the Tables, the entry jambs are decorated with floral motifs. The North Temple of the Great Ballcourt depicts columns as flowering plants that are inhabited by precious birds and butterflies sipping the nectar from blossoms that form vines wrapped around a flowering tree, a theme shared with sculptures from the Castillo Viejo which depict quetzals and other birds sipping nectar from flowering vines (Schmidt et al. 2008) (Fig. 7.7, 7.8a-b). The House of the Shells in the Initial Series Group also features flying birds who suck the nectar from fragrant yellow flowers (Fig. 7.9a-c). One of these birds wears a jade collar, indicating that this is no ordinary bird but one that may be the soul of a heroic warrior or ancestor (Fig. 7.9b). Taube et al. (2020) note similar examples of scenes in the Late Postclassic Codex Borgia where quetzal birds descend to drink from floral offering bowls. 18 The heroic souls of warriors in the eastern solar paradise consume their nectar the same way. A gold disc from the Sacred Cenote depicts a warrior descending from the maw of a serpent. He extends his spear thrower down to the scene directly below where a victim 18 Flores, Stela 1, depicts a diving individual who is flanked by two diving quetzal birds (Boot 2005: fig. 3.25). The floral elements in the compositional space indicates these are diving souls in paradise. 178 has just had his heart extracted. There is good reason that these behavioral patterns for consuming “nectar” are the same since in later Aztec thought, warriors who have entered paradise transform into birds and butterflies who sip on the nectar of flowers in the resplendent house of the sun. The Lower Temple of the Jaguars depicts hummingbirds adorned in jeweled necklaces and earrings as the souls of deceased warriors piercing the hearts of individuals emerging from flowers (Maudslay 1889-1902: III.pl. 46). Such scenes indicate that the open wound in the chest of sacrificial victims is akin to the blossoming flower. The Las Monjas building depicts a large amount of floral iconography seen on the sides of the building. One design forms a pattern of flowers with bifurcated breath elements emerging from both sides, recalling examples of flowers from House E at Palenque and the bifurcated breath elements emerging from the earspools and maws of witz (Fig.7.10a). Another part of the building depicts a floral pattern of lattice work (Fig.7.10b). This same floral lattice patterning occurs on the West building of the Uxmal Monjas along with the feathered serpent (Fig. 7.10c). This is a portrayal of the rain bringing plumed serpent in the eastern floral paradise, the direction of the rain bringing wind and the dawning sun. This same floral patterning from Uxamal and Chichen Itza can be found on the bottom of a Late Postclassic monument from Queretaro depicting an avian sun god sitting in his solar disk (Fig. 7.10d). The floral lattice work of this monument denotes the floral solar paradise. However, it is interesting that this is pictured below the sun god, rather than above. 179 The Sun as Solar Flower The solar ideology of Chichen Itza is encompassed by the notion of paradise, widely known as Flower World. In a groundbreaking study, Jane Hill (1992) noted that Flower World is a celestial solar paradise filled with flowers, precious jewels and butterflies representing the souls of ancestors and the heroic dead. In a number of studies, Taube (2004, 2005, 2006, 2020) has shown that this was widespread in ancient Mesoamerica extending well back into the Pre-Classic period. Jane Hill (1992: 215) noted, “The image of the flowery road, with its prototype in the path of the sun across the heavens, is one of the most widely diffused Flower World metaphors.” In Mesoamerican thought, the flower world is related to the eastern realm of the dawning sun. According to Louise Burkhart, this floral paradise played a major role in colonial Nahua thought: The garden is a shimmering place filled with divine fire; the light of the sun reflect from the petals of the flowers and the iridescent feathers of birds; human beings—the souls of the dead or the ritually transformed living—are themselves flowers, birds, and shimmering gems (Burkhart 1992: 88-109). As Taube (2016: 306) notes, everything from polished jade to dewdrops at dawn relate to this “reflective surface complex” which is clearly the sun. Songs from the sixteenth-century Cantares Mexicanos describe aspects of this solar paradise in vivid detail such as “The flowers are drizzling down” (Bierhorst 1985: 139) and “Sacred flowers of the dawn are blooming in the rainy place of flowers that belongs to him the Ever Present, the Ever Near. The heart pleasers are laden with sunstruck dew” (Bierhorst 1985: 151). As Hill (1992: 129) notes, the Flower World is invoked among the Hopi in rituals such as the 180 Powamuyu ceremony where the sand paintings sacred spaces were known as the Sun’s house and were decorated with symbols for blossoms. Among the ancient Maya, flowers were closely related to the sun with the solar k’in sign being based upon a four-petalled flower (Thompson 1950: 142). At times, k’in signs can appear within flowers in Classic Maya art (fig. 15a). J. Eric Thompson (ibid.) noted that the Chilam Balam of Chumayel mentions the sun placed within a flower; “four-fold [or four-branched] was the plate of the flower, and Ah Kin Xocbiltun [i.e. the sun god] was set in the center.” The sun is the major foci of the Flower World. At Las Monjas, the probable sun deity sits within a large solar flower with breath emanations coming from both sides of the disk (Fig. 7.11a). Flowers in Maya art are frequently shown with emanations indicating aroma or pistils (Stone and Zender 2011: 223). The symmetric breath emanations from the sides of the solar flower at Las Monjas are identical to those coming out of the mouths and earspools of the witz that are so prominent in the architecture of the Las Monjas complex. These breath emanations are also strikingly similar to bifurcated breath emanations emerging from flowers in House E at Palenque (Fig. 7.11b). A Late Classic bowl from Guatemala depicts alternating k’in and floral forms with the k’in sign having similar bifurcated breath elements on both sides (Fig. 7.11c). The Late Postclassic Aztec Chalco Box depicts these same bifurcated breath emanations emerging from both sides of a flower (Fig. 7.11d). Examples of solar disks in the mural from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars depict floral iconography denoting the sun as a solar flower (Coltman 2019). One example depicts the solar disk with two bifurcated breath elements coming from both sides of the disk (Fig. 7.12a). While not symmetric like other examples of breath, these particular elements are 181 identical to ones appearing on flowers from House E at Palenque (Fig. 7.12b). A Late Classic Maya vase depicts multiple examples of flowers with these same bifurcated breath motifs as those found on the House E flowers and the solar disk from Chichen Itza (see K15746). Another example of a solar disk depicts elaborate volutes emerging from both sides which likely represent the aroma or breath of the sun, much as if the sun were a giant solar flower (Fig. 7.12c). Jeweled flowers appear below the disk which once again find parallels in flowers from House E at Palenque (Fig. 7.12d). These examples from Las Monjas and the solar disks depicted in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars are showing the sun as a solar flower. In Late Postclassic Yucatan, the sun was still clearly identified with flowers. The Codex Dresden p. 52b depicts the floral k’in sign with four radiating blossoms as floral rays (Stone and Zender 2011:153) (Fig. 7.13a). Another solar sign appears on Codex Dresden p.56a where the head of the sun god appears in a disk marked by four blossoms (Fig. 7.13b). The sun was sometimes substituted for flowers being carried by the plumed serpent at Chichen Itza (Tozzer 1957: fig. 86, 129). A similar convention was also known for El Tajin and Tulum where plumed serpents carried a flower (Taube 2015: fig. 5.14a-b). The tezcacuitlapilli, the solar back mirror worn by warriors could also take the form of a petaled flower (Tozzer 1957: fig. 107). In the International Style murals of Santa Rita Corozal, Belize, the interior parts of sun disk representations clearly show the petaled flower in the interior. This same convention would denote sun disks in Late Postclassic Central Mexico, including the great Aztec Calendar Stone, marking such disks as solar flowers. 182 The Matter of Paradise As previously mentioned, the sun god of Chichen Itza occupies a floral solar realm known as Flower World. Vivid portrayals of this celestial paradise are found with the many depictions of descending sun gods on the upper registers of the Temple of the Warriors piers. Here, they descend amid a rain of jewels, flowers, flames and other elements denoting the eastern solar paradise (Fig. 7.14a). It is not surprising that at Chichen Itza flames occur in both scenes of war, sacrifice and paradise, all of which denote the solar house of the sun. Aside from appearing with the sun god on the Temple of the Warriors, flames also occur among dancing avian jaguars in the Initial Series Group, with the sun god and plumed serpent pair from the Upper Temple of the Jaguar murals, and amongst the warriors holding heads and eagles and jaguars clutching hearts on the Tzompantli (Fig. 7.14b). The most precious elements, however, are jewels and flowers that rain down with his descent. These precious objects are not confined to the space occupied by the sun god on the upper registers but extend down and continue into the scenes of the individuals directly below (Fig. 7.14c-d). It’s quite explicit that these individuals are occupying the same solar realm of brilliance and beauty as the sun god. Such a realm was described centuries later by the Aztec as “a rain of flowers” in the Cantares Mexicanos: A flower incense, flaming all around, spreads sky aroma. Filled with sunshot mist, as I, the singer, in the gentle rain of flowers sing before the Ever Present, the Ever Near (Bierhorst 1985: 141). 183 Indeed, flowers are one of the more obvious markers of the floral paradise. The Early Classic Maya Deletaille tripod depicts an elaborate scene of paradise with floating flower blossoms forming a literal “rain of flowers” (Hellmuth 1988: fig. 4.2). The elements of jewels and flowers occur elsewhere at Chichen Itza including the facades of the Osario pyramid and panels depicting warriors (Fig. 7.15a). The wooden lintel from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars depicts the sun god in his solar disk with a single jewel placed inside, marking the location as the eastern solar paradise (Taube 2004a: 86). In a representation of the sun god from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars, a jewel is also placed in the solar disk, once again marking the sun as the solar paradise. A number of scenes from the Temple of the Big Tables show a rain of flowers and jewels with Atlantean bearers on the upper and lower registers and with the main central figure being depicted, much like they do on the Temple of the Warriors pillars (Castillo Borges 1998: fig. 24, 25, and 26). These are the same precious elements denoting the sacred and flowery solar realm. Another scene that denotes paradise can be found on a portion of the second sculptured band on the south side of the Temple of the Warriors (Morris et al. 1931: fig. 26) (Fig. 7.15b). The semi-reclining figures may be warriors or priests flanked by animals holding hearts. Once again, this is a conflation of both paradise and heart sacrifice as they complement one another. The Flower World of Chichen Itza is also a place of sacrifice. Schele and Matthews (1998: 229) note that the panels on the outer doorjamb on the north side of the Upper Temple of Jaguars depicts warriors standing among flowers and jewels that “identify the context as one filled with k’ulel, the sacredness that permeates the cosmos”. The precious objects that appear may be related to a concept known as k’uh, a 184 sacred essence similar to the Aztec conception of teotl and the Polynesian mana (Houston 2014: 81-87; Stuart 2017: 251-253). Schele and Miller (1998: 112) note that the sarcophagus lid of Pakal depicts floating flowers, shells and jewels that denote k’uh “…the indestructible, living force that imbues all things” (Fig. 7.16). In Mayan languages, k’uh relates to multiple aspects of holiness, including the sun and the rays of the sun (Houston 2014: 81; Kaufman 2003: 458). K’uh flows from the hands of rulers and fills compositional space where gods and other supernatural beings inhabit (Freidel et al. 1993: 202: fig. 4:18) (Fig. 7.17a-b). As Houston (2014: 87) notes, rulers during the Classic period tightened their grasp on the sacred energy that is k’uh. Such ‘holy matter’ can be seen in an image of a stalactite from Yaxchilan where the ruler appears in a scattering ritual where precious objects such as jewels and signs for k’an “yellow”and yax ‘blue-green”, a difrasismo indicating abundance flows from his hands (Houston 2014: 50; Helmke 2017: fig. 7) (Fig. 7.17a). Like the k’uh that flows from Maya rulers’ hands, Teotihuacan depicts a number of individuals with outstretched hands from which pour streams of precious objects (Hellmuth 1975: pl. 37; Brittenham and Ngao 2013: fig.23). While easily overlooked, these small elements filling in compositional space are important indicators of this sacred realm that helps contextualize the scenes. This same energy and matter that is k’uh fills in the compositional spaces of some Late Classic vase scenes, indicating that this vital energy and essence is literally all around (see K4603 and K4934). Such imagery is well known for the Classic Maya. A jade earspool depicts the mythic starry-deer-crocodile swimming through a sea of k’uh (Houston 2014: 87, fig. 52) (Fig. 7.17c). A cache lid depicting Akan, the god of inebriation, emerges from a vision serpent 185 and floats in space denoted by k’uh (Freidel et al. 1993: 216) (Fig. 7.17d). A Late Classic vase depicts two Ik’ K’uh and four God N figures sitting among a rain of jewels and other precious elements (Taube et al. n.d.) (7.17e). Similar elements denote the solar paradise for the later Aztec. As previously mentioned, offerings 10 and 14 from the Templo Mayor are funerary urns of the fine orange variety depicting the Aztec gods Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl paired with elaborate plumed serpents (Fig. 7.18). Jewels and other elements fill in the composition effectively indicating these scenes as Aztec war gods portraying Toltec warriors in paradise, looking after the cremated remains of the two warriors found in these vessels. Wealth, Beauty, and Abundance in the Initial Series Group The Initial Series Group conveys some of the more profound messages of paradise through portrayals of wealth, abundance, and music (Taube et al. 2020). The main group at the Initial Series is the House of the Phalli with the second structure above on the north and south sides depicting the avian wind god flanking a central image of K’awiil, the god of abundance. The avian wind gods dance and play music amidst a rain of precious articles of dance. The east and west sides of this same superstructure feature richly dressed felines with avian attributes who also engage in dance with flames. Flames also occur with the descending sun god from the Temple of the Warriors pillars which may denote a more obvious allusion to the solar paradise that is the house of the sun. In addition, the west side of this same complex – a structure known as the House of the Shells has elaborate facades of this floral paradise in terms of flowering vines and precious birds (Taube et al. 2020). 186 There is a strong correlation between material wealth with beauty and preciousness. As part of a cult of brilliance, shimmering and glittering gold and metal objects populated paradise (Hosler 1994: 232-233). In the Initial Series, the avian wind god dances among a rain of jewels, cacao, bracelets, earspools, butterfly chest pectorals, and other paraphernalia and regalia related to dance (Taube et al. 2020) (Fig. 7.19a). The items occurring in the dance scenes embody concepts of wealth and the brilliance of the floral solar paradise. Such items would continue to be venerated and held in high esteem. The Codex Durán for instance, depicts an image of precious goods that include jade beads, quetzal plumes, musical instruments, gold, bells, and a jaguar pelt (Fig. 7.19b). The rectangular piers from the Temple of the Owls in the Initial Series Group are depicted as trees with the lower portions of the pillars once featuring a bust of an individual whose body forms a cacao tree adorned with cacao pods as well as jade earspool assemblages, marking this as a world tree of wealth, beauty, and abundance (Martin 2006; Schmidt 2006; Schmidt et al. 2018; Taube et al. 2020) (Fig. 7.20a). Reused stone fragments depicting the crocodile world tree as a cacao tree are associated with the Osario Group whose iconographic program is strikingly similar to the Initial Series Group (Schmidt 2007: 120) (Fig. 7.20b). Early photos and illustrations of the rectangular pier from the Temple of the Owls depicts an individual at the base (Von Winning 1985: figs. 49-51) (Fig. 7.21a). While no longer attached to the pillar, the bust from this pillar appeared in a recent catalog of Maya art (Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 103) (Fig. 7.21b). This individual is strikingly similar to depictions of the Maya sun god, especially with the sinuous breath emanations on the face (Fig. 7.22a-b). His features are especially suggestive of the Jaguar 187 God of the Underworld, who represents the night sun. The same individual makes an appearance at Uxmal where he displays similar breath elements and wears a shoulder cape, a piece of clothing that the Classic Maya sun god is known to wear (Taube et al. 2020) (Fig. 7.22c). The sun god from Uxmal may also appear on a sculpture that once formed part of a façade of a substructure that was covered by the west stairway of the Pyramid of the Magician (Fig. 7.22d). His facial features are striking similar to both the Uxmal sun god and the figure from the piers from the Temple of the Owls at Chichen Itza. One of the key attributes of this figure is a stingray spine in his mouth, a characteristic shared with a portrayal of the Jaguar God of the Underworld who appears on the brow of witz in the Las Monjas (Seler 1990-1996: VI: fig. 35). This same being appears at Uxmal on the 'nameless hill' on the eastside of the House of the Doves system (Seler 1917: fig. 10). The sun god forming the base of the pillar in the Temple of the Owls is a representation of the world tree. In a number of cases, the sun is connected to the cosmic world tree. An Early Classic Maya vase from the Merchants Barrio at Teotihuacan depicts the head of the sun god as the base of a cosmic tree with tree limbs tipped with the fret nosed serpent which also occurs with the Late Classic cosmic trees from Palenque (Taube 2003: 291; Taube 2018: 281). (Fig. 7.23a). A Classic period carved vase from Oxkintok, Yucatan, depicts the world tree as the home of tropical birds (Fig. 7.23b). The tree is marked by the solar k’in sign down by the base. This tree is probably being marked as the eastern solar paradise. On Codex P. 44, the world tree grows from the heart sacrifice and solar disk placed on the abdomen of Xochiquetzal. A Late Postclassic Central Mexican turquoise disk depicts the plumed serpent carrying the sun upon a world tree which likens 188 the daily event of the ascent of the dawning sun on the back of the plumed serpent as a pivotal cosmic event (Fig. 7.23c). A depiction of the Mixtec sun god One Death appears in the Codex Colombino as a personified world tree (Fig. 7.23d). In the Initial Series pillar, this probable sun god is likely being represented as the embodiment and bringer of wealthy items such as jade and cacao, a position clearly shared with K’awiil. Seler (1900-1901: 93) notes that the first interpreter of the Codex TellerianoRemensis refers to the sun as a producer of all things: “therefore Maize (tlaolli) is called tonacayotl, i.e. ‘he is begotten by the Sun”. One scene on a Late Classic Maya vase depicts the Maya sun god holding a bundle of quetzal plumes (Taube et al. 2020: 88) (Fig. 7.24). K’awiil faces the sun god and points towards a cacao tree with an individual forming the base recalling the pillars from the Temple of the Owls (Martin 2006; Schmidt 2006; Taube et al. 2020). As previously mentioned, K’awiil is a god of abundance and plays a role in the materiality of paradise by bringing precious objects of wealth and abundance that denote it. An explicit expression of K’awil bringing wealth is from a capstone found in the Initial Series Group depicting this deity under a magnificent solar sky depicted by its pointed rays and encompassing sky band (Von Winning 1985: 74-77) (Fig. 7.25). On this painted scene, K’awiil has just emerged from the dark and fertile regions of the underworld, a possible rejollada or cenote fit for cacao production (Gómez-Pompa 1990). On this capstone, K’awiil is in the house of the resplendent sun and forms the axis mundi in the cosmogram of four directionally placed cacao pods (Taube et al. 2020: 89-90). This forms one of the most basic and fundamental concepts in ancient Mesoamerica—that of the foursided world and the sacred center. 189 Another cosmological pattern can be seen in the four jade earspools he holds in one hand while holding a single jade earspool in the other thus forming another quincunxial pattern. Essentially, this is a cosmological model of material wealth. Because of the solar sky band, the offerings of jade, and the directional cacao pods, it is likely that K’awiil is in the solar paradise having just emerged from the dark and fertile cacao-growing region of the underworld. The Osario pyramid shares a number of important characteristics and traits with the Initial Series Group. Flanking the four stairways of the Osario, K’awiil appears as a quetzal on the many facades with cacao pods and other falling precious elements. They are adorned in rich jewelry including masked diadems and necklaces with human head pendants. They exhale quetzal plumes as precious breath and are avian embodiments of wealth and beauty. In the Initial Series Group, as well as on the Osario, it is K’awiil who consistently appears amid a rain of precious jade earspools and cacao pods. K’awiil appears widely in the Initial Series Group. On the north and south sides of the upper structure of the House of the Phalli, he appears on a jaguar throne. As previously mentioned, the painted capstone from the Temple of the Owls depicts K’awiil holding bowls of jade beads and earspools. The temple superstructure of the Osario depicts K’awiil with similar bowls, in one case holding a bowl full of tamales. Thompson (1970: 289) noted that K’awiil signified “surplus of our daily bread”, a fitting description for this bringer of wealth and abundance. Flowers, Song, and Dance at Chichen Itza and Cotzumalhuapa Like Chichen Itza, Late Classic Cotzumalhuapa also had a conception of a flower world paradise. This is reflected in the Bilbao stelae, which Oswaldo Chinchilla (2013a: 190 86) noted “…are concerned with the evocation of the Flower World and its denizens, including the Sun God and other characters that may include gods and ancestors”. Cotzumalhuapa shares a number of striking features in its iconographic programs with Chichen Itza, especially in terms of the solar flower world. The two sites shared major interests in emphasizing this flower world through the depiction of flowering plants, cacao, music, and quite appropriately, the sun god (Chinchilla 2013a, 2015; Schmidt et al. 2009). As previously mentioned, while there is no direct evidence of a major Classic Central Mexican sun god, there is good evidence for a sun god at Cotzumalhuapa. Bilbao Monument 3 depicts the solar deity with a large solar pectoral on his chest emerging from the mouth of a large serpent (Chinchilla 2013a: 84) (Fig. 7.26a). El Castillo Monument 1 from Cotzumalhuapa depicts the same solar figure (Fig. 7.26b). Chinchilla (2013a: 84) notes that the sun god from Monument 3 and El Castillo Stela 1 emerge from a maw that is the access to the sun gods realm. Chinchilla notes that Bilbao Stela 7 depicts a frontal view of this maw with a long haired figure emerging from the maw (Fig. 7.26c). As Chinchilla notes, the flowering vines in the figures arms and hands suggest that this individual is a denizen of the flower world. It is also likely that this individual is another representation of the Cotzumalhuapa sun god. Notably, his arms are crossed over his chest recalling the sun god on the base of the pier depicted with jade and cacao from the Temple of the Owls in the Initial Series Group at Chichen Itza. Another probable image of the Cotzumalhuapa sun god is from a fragment in the National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Guatemala, where the individual appears in a solar disk similar to the one depicted on Bilbao Monument 3 (Oswaldo Chinchilla, pers. comm. 2019) (Fig. 7.26d). 191 The iconography of paradise with a complimentary solar deity is shared between Cotzumalhuapa and Chichen Itza and may have something to do with the trade of cacao and other material wealth from the South Pacific Coastal region of Guatemala. In exporting such goods as cacao, quetzal plumes, and jade, these rich tropical regions would have been literal “merchants of paradise” operating in regions of wealth, beauty, and abundance. Cacao iconography is a major theme at both sites. This is reflected well on Bilbao Monument 21, where a central figure appears among flowering plants with fruits and flowers on them which birds feed on (Fig. 7.27a). Many of the fruits, some of which represent cacao, are personified heads. As Chinchilla (2013a: 88) notes, the fruits stand for sacrificed victims. Furthermore, as Chinchilla (2013a: 89) points out, the harvest of cacao was equated with sacrifice as can be seen in the gloss for the month Nabeitoqiq of a Kaqchikel calendar dated to 1685 which reads “First harvest of cacao, time to cut throats”. A jade found in the Sacred Cenote is almost certainly from Cotzumalhuapa where an individual grasps onto a cacao plant (Fig. 7.27b). It is interesting that aside from the heroic souls of warriors accompanying the sun into paradise, Aztec merchants also ascend to the solar paradise: “… the merchants did not truly die; they went to heaven, they accompanied the Sun on its course. Like those who dies in battle, they say they accompanied the Sun, they went to heaven. (Sahagún 1950-82: IX: 22R). Since it is the merchants that bring wealth and desirable objects, they are the ones who transport the precious and highly valued objects that characterize paradise. In Mesoamerica and the American Southwest, chromatic symbolism frequently appears in song “where the glitter of iridescence in the wings of hummingbirds, butterflies, 192 and dragonflies, and in precious stones and shells is a significant theme” (Hill 1992: 118). Yaqui deer songs represent the flower world seya ania, a paradise of brilliant colors where the deer dancers help the spirits access this paradise (see Evers and Molina 1987). The dancing and singing as access to paradise is a major theme of the Initial Series Group at Chichen Itza. In many ways, the elaborate floral imagery with its sinewy vines and cacao pods bring to mind the art of Cotzumalhuapa on the south Pacific coast of Guatemala. As Chinchilla (n.d.) notes, there is no flower mountain at Cotzumalhuapa but the flower world paradise is very prevalent. Chinchilla notes that the elaborate speech scrolls of ball players is one such similarity. These are not mere speech but likely singing. In Cotzumalhuapa, Flower World is evoked through song and dance, which is in line with Uto-Aztecan people of the American Southwest (Hill 1992; Taube 2004; Chinchilla 2015: 10). Bilbao Monument 21 from the South Coast of Guatemala depicts detailed ritual scenes of human sacrifice, song and dance evoking the solar Flower World, which is characterized by flowers, precious objects, and birds (Chinchilla 2013). As Chinchilla (2015: 5) notes, “sound scrolls” at Cotzumalhuapa appear as flowering vines laden with flowers and can be traced to earlier Teotihuacan. For Chinchilla (2015: 6), these sound scrolls represent songs invoking the solar paradise of the Flower World. Monuments 4 and 6 from Bilbao, Cotzualhuapa, depict a celestial figure holding a drum (Fig. 7.28a-b). Vines with blossoming flowers and jewels emanate from the individuals with drums marking them as denizens of the solar flower world. Chinchilla (n.d.) notes that both Chichen Itza and Cotzumalhuapa were participants in extensive networks of economic and cultural exchange 193 and through this involvement represented an “international style” that may have come before the information networks of the Postclassic. The Initial Series depicts multiple representations of the avian wind god engaged in music making and dance. In one representation, he holds a double chamber drum (Fig. 7.29a). During excavations at Nim li Punit, Belize, a probable ceramic drum depicting the avian wind god was found alongside a jade Ik’ pectoral inscribed with a lengthy text (Prager and Braswell 2016) (Fig. 7.29b). A wooden Aztec drum known as a teponaztli depicts the face of Ehecatl, the Late Postclassic Central Mexican wind god who probably derived from the avian wind god of Chichen Itza (Saville 1925: pl. XXIIb) (Fig. 7.29c). As noted in Chapter 5, the Aztec teponaztli frequently depicts themes of armed warriors in supernatural flight. This theme may have been derived from earlier Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics where reclining figures appear to be flying (Fig. 7.30a). In Late Postclassic Central Mexico, the flying or reclining warrior soul relates closely to other figures who are not warriors but gods of wind, life, and music such as Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl and Xochipilli (Fig. 7.30b,d-e). The flying and reclining position of these warriors probably refers to the flight of birds and butterflies in paradise. Hill (1992: 128) notes that the Flower World “is the realm of heroes in their creative aspect, and the spirit ways along which they travel are “flowery worlds”. One Late Postclassic image depicts an explicit example of a butterfly whose body transforms into a road of flowers (Franco 1961). A plaque found at the Templo Mayor depicts an armed deity in a unique stance. With one foot leaping forward and the other extended back in the air, this stance takes on a pose as if the figure were in flight (Fig.7.30c). The position of this warrior is strikingly 194 similar to Quetzalcoatl flying through a wind stream with precious objects such as musical instruments, flowers, and butterflies in the Codex Borgia (Fig. 7.30d). Karl Taube (2001: 114-115; n.d.) has demonstrated that Codex Borgia pp. 35-38 represents the origin of music and that the theme of the Codex Borgia pages of wind-borne ash containing flowers, musical instruments, and butterflies can also be found on Aztec teponaztli. Indeed, the ends of many teponaztli depict flowers and figures in a flying motion much like Quetzalcoatl in the wind-borne stream of ash. Taube (ibid.) mentions one ceramic drum featuring Ixtlilton in the same flying position as Quetzalcoatl in the Codex Borgia (Fig. 7.30f). A ceramic plaque depicts the sun god, Tonatiuh, wearing a floral tezcacuitlapilli and flying in the same position as Quetzalcoatl and Xochipilli (Fig.7.30g). The Aztec teponaztli depicts both the souls of heroic warriors and the gods of music, life, and beauty in the solar paradise. These drums also make other explicit reference to the solar paradise or Flower World in representations of flowers and the sun. One example of a teponaztli depicts a central flower with blossoms emerging from the sides from which butterflies suck the fragrant nectar (Saville 1925: pl. XXIIc). A ceramic Aztec teponaztli at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art depicts a large sun disk with a hole through the center. As mentioned in Chapter 3, this hole for music serves as a portal piercing directly through the sun as the access to the solar paradise. Another teponaztli depicts a sun disk with the sun god in the center (Saville 1925: pl. XXXII). The back of this teponaztli depicts an intertwined eagle and jaguar, the well-known military orders for the Aztec. Conflations of birds and butterflies, the transformed souls of warriors in paradise, flank the eagle and jaguar pair. Flying figures occur on the sides of the teponaztli, 195 one a warrior, the other an eagle. The program of this teponaztli details the solar paradise as it refers to themes of war and sacrifice but also of the paradisiacal realm that is the home of the sun. The point, as has been emphasized, is that the themes of war, sacrifice and paradise are inextricably linked. The teponaztli is a great example of this dynamic where warriors as well as gods of wind, music, and dance appear flying through paradise. Like the teponaztli, the flying figures discussed above, depict warriors and the sun god in the same flying position as Quetzalcoatl, Xochipilli, and Ixtilton. The gods of music, pleasure, and life occupy the same solar paradise as the sun god and warriors who accompany him on his daily journey through the sky. Depictions of paradise carried on well into the colonial period. One of the more elaborate representations of paradise came in the sixteenth century murals of Malinalco, where birds and insects sucked the sweet nectar from a multitude of flowers in a lush garden paradise (Peterson 1993) (Fig. 31a). As Peterson (1993: 134, fig. 117, 118) notes, the vault frescoes at Malinalco depict the converging of precious green stones into winged creatures bound for paradise, the house of the sun. Peterson notes that 23 trilobed symbols and insects or “bees” appear in the frescoes. Peterson (ibid,) describes trilobed motifs taking on the appearance of insects or bees sucking the honey from flowers. Aside from birds and insects enjoying the floral bounty of paradise, there are other themes shared between the paradise murals of Malinalco, the Initial Series Group, and Cotzumalhuapa. Music, as an important component of paradise well attested in the Initial Series and at Coztumalhuapa occurs in the form of song scrolls in the murals of Malinalco (Peterson 1993: fig. 28, 67, 80, 83). The Malinalco murals also depict a monkey grasping a cacao pod (Peterson 1993: 104- 196 105, fig. 95). Peterson (1993: 122) notes that “the artist linked to exotic and prized tribute items from distant zones of the Aztec empire”. In other words, this may have been a nod to the eastern tropical lands of the Maya, the paradisiacal land of the dawning sun. Another major expression of the floral solar paradise is on the Palencia Cross which depicts water, insects, and creatures of the forest (Garcia Barríos and Parada López de Corselas 2014) (Fig. 31b). Clearly influenced by ancient Nahua conceptions of paradise, this cross also depicts the plumed serpent, the bringer of rain and the dawning sun from the eastern sea, and a primary denizen of Flower World, home of the sun, wealth, and beauty. Conclusion The eastern floral solar paradise, also known as Flower World, was a major theme at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza. Here, paradise is characterized by the dawning sun on the celestial road of the plumed serpent, the souls of heroic warriors who accompany these eastern deities, the gods of music and pleasure who dance in the house of the sun, and the rain of flowers and jewels that make up the essence or vital energy of paradise . Chichen Itza incorporated wide-spread images of paradise which may indicate the whole site was conceived of as what the Aztec referred to as the Ichan Tonatiuh Ilhuicac, ‘House of the Sun’ where they turned into bejeweled birds and butterflies feeding off the nectar of flowers much like the heroic warrior flew to the cuauhxicalli (Sahagún 1950-82: VI: 162). If space in Maya imagery is any indication of location, then it is obvious that the sun god of Chichen Itza inhabits the solar paradise and that these precious objects that appear with him and others are components of the energized holy essence that is k’uh, the Maya concept 197 of holy matter or energy. The ‘rain of flowers’ is essentially the energy k’uh, a sacred matter that imbues this supernatural realm. If Chichen Itza is conceived as the eastern solar paradise in Early Postclassic Mesoamerica, then it is not surprising that this sacred energy and matter is found in compositional space in images throughout the site. One of the more expressive ways that Flower World is manifested at Chichen Itza is through Flower Mountain. While there are no natural mountains at Chichen Itza, the mountains take an artificial form as the witz heads that adorn many of the buildings at the site. Many of these witz wear a headband with a single flower in the center, a clear identifying marker of Flower Mountain (Taube 2004a). Actual temples at the site may be complete embodiments of Flower Mountain including the Osario and the Temple of the Warriors. Flower Mountain appears on a number of lower registers warriors stand upon including twelve at the Temple of Xtoloc, right down the sacbe and directly east of the main entrance of the Osario. With their themes of music, dance, wealth, and beauty, the Osario pyramid and the Initial Series Group epitomize the flower world paradise better than any other structure or temple complex at the site. Paradise is also characterized by material wealth such as jade and quetzal plumes brought by the sun god and the array of glistening and precious dance paraphernalia that the avian wind god dances among. Chichen Itza and Cotzumalhuapa share an art style that emphasizes many themes of paradise including flowers and blossoming vines, music, the sun god, and cacao. 198 Chapter 8: Conclusion As the title of his famous book Aztecs: People of the Sun (1958) suggests, Alfonso Caso saw the Aztec as being intimately connected to the sun. Indeed, there was no reason to think otherwise with the focal point of Aztec ritual revolving around heart sacrifice to feed the sun and sustain the present world. However, as I have argued throughout this dissertation, an earlier civilization worthy of the title “People of the Sun” existed at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza, which was the likely antecedent of solar ideology in Late Postclassic Central Mexico. This ideology of the sun at Chichen Itza, centered around the young and kingly yaxk’in and his daily ascent. The cenotes as mythic seas that dot the site are symbolic eastern seas from which the sun is born fresh and new at every dawn, carried by the plumed serpent, the aquatic and feathered embodiment of wind and breath. Indeed, the first pairing of the sun god and plumed serpent being appear at Chichen Itza. Perhaps the colonial accounts describing the sun summoning Quetzalcoatl to the “City of the Sun” was the resplendent sun requesting his vehicle to lift him daily out of the eastern sea at dawn. Heroic warriors accompany the sun on this daily journey, using their serpents as vehicles to traverse the skies. In fact, the plumed serpent’s most important role seems to be that of a path or road, not only for the rains and the dawning sun, but for these souls of heroic warriors. Plumed serpents also carry tezcacuitlapilli on their bodies, taking on the burden of the sun much like warriors do. The apotheosized warrior is a major theme and this includes the Chak Mool, and warriors emerging from the maw of serpents in front of 199 cuauhxicalli bowls. The point is simple—blood and hearts sustain the sun and the heroic souls of warriors, where in the house of the sun they take the form of birds and butterflies consuming the sweet ambrosia from flowers which can be contrasted with their form as warriors consuming blood and hearts from cuauhxicalli. Quite frankly, the solar paradise of Chichen Itza is also a place of sacrifice. A major theme of this dissertation has been about the Classic Maya origins of solar ideology, its manifestation at Chichen Itza, and spread into Central Mexico by way of the ideological relationship shared between Chichen Itza and contemporaneous Tula, with this Maya legacy becoming most prominent in the solar cult that is reflected in Aztec solar iconography and ritual (Matos and Solís 2004: 87-88). Almost directly due east of Tula, Chichen Itza would have been geographically and symbolically significant to people of western Mesoamerica. The east was significant to the rest of Mesoamerica extending from ancient Teotihuacan to the contact period Aztec, for being the geographic locale of the Maya and from where the rain bringing wind and dawning sun came from. It was also the economic and symbolic region of precious objects held in high esteem such as jade, cacao, and quetzal plumes. In other words, the land of the Maya was the land of the sun and the precious exotic material objects that symbolized wealth and abundance. Furthermore, Chichen Itza may have been conceived of as Flower World, the paradisiacal home of the sun, ancestors, wealth, and beauty. Quite fittingly, the sun is conceived as a giant solar flower and the sun god, the preeminent denizen of the eastern solar floral paradise. The rain of jewels and flowers that characterize this paradise are akin to the powerful and sacred energy or matter known as 200 k’uh which flows from the hands of Classic Maya rulers and fills out the very air and space that gods and rulers inhabit, the stuff, or quite literally, the matter, of paradise. The floral solar paradise was the preferred afterlife destination of kings, warriors, and noblemen. As Taube (2004a: 87) notes, the art of the Classic Maya and Early Postclassic Chichen Itza vividly portray the rain of flowers, that is the essence of paradise, whereas the Cantares Mexicanos gives textual descriptions of a paradise inhabited by deceased Aztec rulers. This paradise is invoked in Tlaxcala where the souls of nobles turned into jewels, clouds, and precious birds (Mendieta 1980: 170). Indeed, the new sun god of Chichen Itza is a king as is evident by his jester god diadem and jaguar throne. The interior of solar disks at Chichen Itza often give indication that the sun itself is the solar paradise. Like the examples of solar disks on the upper registers of the Temple of the Warriors piers, jewels also denote the solar paradise inside solar disks in the Lower Temple of the Jaguars and the wooden lintel in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. As Taube (1994) has noted, the Late Postclassic sun god, Tonatiuh, derives from the Chichen Itza sun god. However, much like the Classic Maya, the ideological underpinnings of the sun god of Chichen Itza are closely related to rulership and the office of kingship which is reflective in the Chichen sun god being based off a Maya king. Due to a lack of texts, it is impossible to know for sure whether the rulers of Chichen Itza took on the role of the sun god like their Classic Maya predecessors. However, given the sheer amount of sun god representations, I strongly suspect this to be the case. What we can be sure of, is that the sun god of Chichen Itza was a young and new solar deity who was not the otherworldly looking sun god known for the Classic Maya. Instead, this youthful sun 201 god was depicted as a man, and king, who was likely derived from or partially influenced by Terminal Classic examples from Ciebal and Ek’ Balam. In other words, the sun god of Chichen Itza can be viewed as a direct product of the Classic Maya collapse, perhaps a reimagined fusion of ancient solar kings depicted as youthful rulers occupying their throne in the fiery and resplendent eastern paradise. Despite this individual having no Classic Maya visual counterpart, one can still ascertain his roots to a more ancient Maya past, most evident at Ek’Balam where the ruler Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ Ek’ appears in a solar disk framed by centipede heads while sitting in the “posture of royal ease”, a common seated position of the Late Classic Maya sun god (Schaffer 1991: 212-213). The most clear cut example of the sun god from Chichen Itza resembling the representation of Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ Ek’ on Stela 1 from Ek’ Balam, is found at the Hacienda. Here the sun god sits in his solar disk in the exact same royal position as Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ Ek’, the apotheosized sun god of Ek’ Balam (Lincoln 1990: 174). While the solar disk on Ek’ Balam Stela 1 still maintained Classic Maya conventions with the skeletal centipede heads at the four corners of the disk, the Hacienda disk at Chichen took on a form that would be more consistent with those of Late Postclassic Central Mexico except for how solar rays were rendered. There was one exception, however, in a depiction of a solar disk from the murals in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars which depicted the new form of the solar disk unique to Chichen Itza but with four radiating fret nosed solar breath serpents, a convention also known for Classic Maya solar disks (Fig. 5.6a). The turquoise tezcacuitlapilli known for Chichen Itza appear to be copying this exact same solar design 202 (Fig. 5.6b). Here, solar iconography at Chichen Itza combined the old with the new, a common theme found throughout the site. So, what is to be made out of the colonial accounts from Central Mexico which describe Quetzalcoatl being summoned by the sun god to the “City of the Sun”? The colonial accounts from both Central Mexican and Yucatan may have profound meaning regarding the relationship between Tula and Chichen Itza, most significant being the earliest pairing of a plumed serpent figure with the sun god who is an early form of Tonatiuh in a solar disk. The pairing of the plumed serpent figure and sun god appear on carved wooden lintels from the Castillo as well as the Upper Temple of the Jaguars, Temple of the Wall Panels, and several scenes from the murals in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. All these scenes indicate the plumed serpent being is presenting cuauhxicalli bowls filled with human hearts to the sun deity. The major focus of this dissertation has been solar ideology, which at Chichen Itza can be generally characterized by a single daily event— the ascent of the dawning sun on the road of the plumed serpent. The plumed serpent is the celestial rope which pulls up the dawning sun, with the heroic souls of warriors accompanying these powerful forces from the east on this journey to zenith. Frankly, it is not important whether or not this is the exact city mentioned by Sahagún, Chimalpain, and Torquemada— there are many Tollans referenced throughout Mesoamerica and there may very well have been multiple cities identified with the sun. What is important is that these accounts describe the two coming together, a myth that would seem to be well known at Early Postclassic Chichen Itza where the sun god and plumed serpent being appear repeatedly together for the first time thus occupying a major 203 theme at the site. No other ancient Mesoamerican city at this time is tuned into solar iconography and ritual as much as Chichen Itza. Their devotion to the solar cult was unlike anything seen before. The ideological relationship between Chichen Itza and Tula may have had something to do with Tula seeing Chichen Itza as a “City of the Sun”, the home of the sun god. This is all the more plausible considering that Tula is due almost directly west from Chichen Itza and that the dawning sun rises in the east. Tula likely perceived the dawning sun as the vibrant, youthful, and kingly sun god from Chichen Itza, which may account for the discrepancies in solar imagery between the two sites. It is also plausible that Chichen Itza looked to Tula as the western Tollan from where the great Ku’kul’can came from, as stated in the colonial sources. While there is no evidence of a Toltec invasion or military conquest, the shared relationship between the two sites seemed cemented in the new ideology of the sun with Tula possibly even seeing Chichen Itza as a “City of the Sun”, which perhaps entered later Aztec thought in remembering the eastern journey of the great Quetzalcoatl. Certainly, this event was a major remembrance among the Aztec as this was also the event where Quetzalcoatl transformed into Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, ‘Lord of Dawn’, whose one form was a plumed serpent marked with star signs along its body and in some cases was the daily transport of the dawning sun out of the eastern sea (Bierhorst 1992: 36). It is perhaps no coincidence that the imagery at Chichen Itza suggests these many intertwined eastern themes coalesced during the Early Postclassic. As mentioned in the introduction, Chichen Itza was not a product of Central Mexico. Lincoln (1988) noted that the cultural and social formations of Chichen Itza were indigenous to Yucatan and that there was no evidence for an invasion, migration, or one- 204 way diffusion from Central Mexico. Instead, Lincoln saw the data supporting the proposition that … “…Tula, El Tajin, Xochicalco, Mitla, and other Highland sites could have participated with Chichen Itza in an archaeological “horizon” or interaction sphere where material goods and significant ideas were exchanged on a regular and continuing basis” (cited in Ringle 2004: 168). In many ways, this describes an International Style that Chichen Itza was a major part of. However, despite a recent trend by some scholars to avoid the often muddy and redundant Chichen Itza-Tula debate, I find it entirely appropriate to continue to look to these two great centers as one of the primary mechanisms through which Maya ideas entered into the ideology of Central Mexico. Chichen Itza’s influence on Tula does not constitute an isolated case but part of a trend that saw earlier foreign Maya influence at Epi-Classic sites such as Cacaxtla and Xochicalco (Boot 2005: 269). The relationship with Tula should not be hard to understated or complex to grasp. As Smith and Montiel (2001: 268) note: “Tula and Chichen Itza were clearly interacting with one another both commercially and stylistically. These were two of the largest and most influential cities in the Early Postclassic world system, and this two-way interaction is not surprising”. A major component of the Chichen Itza-Tula debate revolves around the point of origin and dissemination of art styles and ideology. Boot (2005: 268) suggests that Chichen Itza and Tula had a common ancestor in Teotihuacan where each site derived part of their architecture and iconography. According to Boot (2005: 268), the iconography of lordship and militarism was introduced and integrated into the local architecture and iconographic programs of Chichen Itza between 700-1000 C.E.. Also, Teotihuacan has been thought to 205 have been the main source and inspiration for Aztec solar ideology, primarily because of myths discussing the birth of the sun and moon at this ancient city (Taube 2000). However, there is little solar iconography and no specific solar deity at Teotihuacan which suggests that the solar cult for Late Postclassic Central Mexico came from somewhere else. While the Aztec may have associated their solar cult with Teotihuacan, the roots of this ideology and iconography come from the eastern lands of the Maya, particularly at the Early Postclassic site of Chichen Itza where there are more concentrated representations of the solar deity than anywhere else in Mesoamerica. This suggests that Chichen Itza may have been a “style donor” to Tula. With that said, it may be time we revisit Kubler’s (1962) suggestion, the “shot heard around the world”, that Chichen Itza had some major influence over Tula and the ensuing ideology of highland Mexico. According to Sahagún (19501982: 10: 165-170), we know the Aztec looked upon the Toltec as wise innovators of marvelous works including the art of medicine and the year count. However, the Aztecs may have had a highly inflated view of the accomplishments of the Toltecs, and the scholars today who accept the existence of a Toltec empire base their view more on the exaggerated mythical accounts of the Aztecs than on empirical archaeological data (Smith and Montiel 2001: 252). There is some debate as to whether or not Tula was an empire. According to Smith and Montiel (2001: 269), there are three primary reasons why scholars have accepted the idea of a Toltec empire. First is an over reliance on native historical records. Second is the lack of archaeology in Early Postclassic Mexico outside of Tula. Third is a lack of models in archaeology and anthropology that can inform the role that large cities played beyond the imperialism model. In short, the authors state that Tula can 206 be acknowledged for what it was and for the many contributions it made without necessarily being the capitol of an empire (Smith and Montiel 2001: 270). While it is beyond the scope of this dissertation, I highly suspect that Chichen Itza was an empire, another reason why Chichen Itza may have been the superior force in the Chichen-Tula relationship. Regarding solar ideology, the possibility will always exist that contemporaneous Tula tapped the solar fountain and drank from it more deeply than this study has given credit. Indeed, the sun god of Chichen Itza appears on the Ixtapontongo rock painting and on two Tula-related vases. Furthermore, there are recent studies arguing for Tula’s artistic influence on Chichen Itza. Most recently, Keith Jordan (2016) has argued that there are some major issues with seeing Tula as a recipient rather than donor given recent archaeological studies from an Epi-Classic context at Tula Chico. However, until more archaeological evidence is found at Tula, it seems that Chichen Itza was the fountainhead of a solar ideology from which Tula and the people of Late Postclassic Central Mexico would readily draw from. My approach to this study has rested on the assumption that Chichen Itza could not be understood through the prism of one Mesoamerican culture alone. Only with a broader understanding of ancient Mesoamerican traditions that include Teotihuacan and the Classic Maya among others, could the attempt then be made to understand the origins of this enigmatic and complex site. Indeed, the constant hybridity of east meets west is widely apparent at every turn. A good case in point is the Temple of the Warriors where the Maya representation of Flower Mountain appears side by side the Early Postclassic version of the Teotihuacano War Serpent. Another hybrid notable for Chichen Itza, and probably the 207 ultimate conflation of east meets west, is the plumed serpent, the most elaborate representations of which are paired with the sun god and appear with distinctive Maya traits including beard, quetzal crest, and floral tail while its plumed body and rattlesnake tail are distinctive traits associated with Central Mexican plumed serpents (Coltman and Taube n.d.). The plumed serpent plays a major role in solar ideology, as the celestial path of the dawning sun. Much more than just a path for the sun, these beings also served as the paths for heroic warriors at Chichen Itza, Tula, and Tenochtitlan. On the Northwest and Northeast colonnade of Chichen Itza, serpents frequently carry warriors in their maws, bringing them before cuauhxicalli, offering vessels of hearts which they consume with their spear-throwers (Taube 2009: 103). A jade bead found in the Sacred Cenote depicts a warrior armed with his spear-thrower and darts as he emerges from the maw of a plumed serpent, underscoring the role plumed serpents played as celestial vehicles for heroic warriors (Proskouriakoff 1974: 104, fig. 8). Figures emerging from the maw of plumed serpents and centipedes is a common theme in Classic Maya art where so-called vision serpents frequently appear with figures emerging from their maws indicating their role as supernatural conduits or portals (Friedel et al. 1993; Schele and Miller 1986: pl. 63, 65). Lintel 25 from Yaxchilan depicts the emergence of a Maya ancestral and primordial figure in Teotihuacan military attire being conjured through a vision serpent thus showing that the souls of ancestral heroic warriors could be conjured though these serpents (Stuart 2005: 280-281). The plumed or feathered serpent known as K’uk’ulkan to the Maya inhabitants of Chichen Itza was a major theme at the site with the most elaborate representation of this 208 individual occurring on the Lower Temple of the Jaguars where the magnificent serpent backs its human counterpart who wears the gold Tlaloc serpent rain mask identifying him as the wind bringing rain from the east. The elaborate plumed serpent backing this individual is the same magnificent serpent appearing in the scenes with the sun god from the wooden lintel in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. It was this plumed serpent that served as the daily celestial path of the dawning sun. As previously noted, the first pairing of the solar deity and plumed serpent being appear at Chichen Itza, With their representation as balustrades, they faced towards cenotes, the mythic seas from where they pulled the dawning sun to zenith. Another serpent frequently found at the site is decorated with swirling clouds along its body causing many scholars to refer to this serpent as Mixcoatl after the Nahua deity whose name translates as ‘Cloud Serpent’ (Ringle 2004: 201-202). The clouds along the body may reference the being as a bringer of rain bearing clouds, one of the major functions of plumed serpents. Like plumed serpents, these ‘Cloud Serpents’ serve as balustrades and as the celestial transport for warriors. Basically, there seems to be little difference in the specific functions of these serpents. Complicating the issue, however, are the many other serpents appearing throughout the site, including a spiky multi-colored rainbow serpent from the murals in the Temple of the Chacmool. In a recent study, Claudia Brittenham (2019) identifies the Rainbow Serpent as a predecessor to the Xiuhcoatl, a transmission she notes derived originally from Teotihuacan and made its way to Chichen Itza and then finally to the Aztec. While I agree with Brittenham that Chichen Itza plays a key role in the dissemination of the Xiuhcoatl 209 into Central Mexico, I instead have interpreted the Xiuhcoatl as deriving from the Classic Maya fret-nosed solar breath serpent which appears as the breath of the sun god and as the radiating elements from Classic Maya solar disks as well as solar disks known for Chichen Itza including the turquoise tezcacuitlapilli. The Rainbow Serpent was clearly an important serpent at Chichen Itza, but I suspect may have been a separate entity from the Xiuhcoatl. However, there are notable traits such as the forelimbs of the Rainbow Serpent that are shared with the Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl. However, a number of serpent beings in Late Postclassic Central Mexico have forelimbs as well (see Codex Borgia pp. 67, 72). It is possible that the Xiuhcoatl takes on several aspects from serpents known across Mesoamerica and is thus another conflation or hybrid like the plumed serpent itself. A Late Postclassic vase from the site of Chacmool, Quintana Roo, depicts a serpent with forelimbs and segmented body, traits of the Xiuhcoatl (Fig. 4.20g). However, this serpent is a rattlesnake with floral tail emanating quetzal plumes which is the Early Postclassic plumed serpent tail (Coltman and Taube n.d.). In other words, this serpent seems to be a conflation of both the Xiuhcoatl and plumed serpent. I have suggested the Maya origins of the Xiuhcoatl repeatedly throughout this dissertation. The similarities and relation to the sun between the Classic Maya step fret solar breath serpent and the Xiuhcoatl is striking and cannot be ignored. As previously mentioned, the step fret solar breath serpent appears emanating from a solar disk in the murals from the Upper Temple of the Jaguars which is mirrored in images of turquoise tezcacuitlapilli found in the Castillo-sub and the Temple of the Chac Mool. Over a century ago, in a study of Palenque, Eduard Seler (1915: 14, fig. 4e) first noted that the fret-nosed 210 serpent was the fire serpent. In his dissertation on Chichen Itza, Eric Boot (2005: 254) points out that in Tojolab’al, the entry k’ak’chan identified the centipede as a “fire (k’ak) serpent (chan) (Lenkersdorf 1979: 190). This is an interesting point considering both the centipede head and the fret-nosed solar breath serpent appear on solar disks for both the Classic Maya and Chichen Itza. The two are in some way connected or interchangeable in their relation to solar disks and cartouches. The solar breath serpent appears in Classic Maya art as the breath exhaled by the sun deity and his impersonators, a visual statement of the heated, fiery, and vital essence of the sun itself. This topic is certainly deserving of future research, especially concerning the blending and shared characteristics and meaning of centipedes, plumed serpents, and the Xiuhcoatl. 19 As a representation of the sun’s essence, the Xiuhcoatl also plays a part in heart sacrifice. Among the Aztec, the Xiuhcoatl was brought to the cuauhxicalli and raised to the four directions and then was cast upon sacrificial paper and burned (Sahagún 1950-82: 2: 136). In the Mixtec Codex Nuttal p. 69, the Yahui, the Mixtec equivalent of the Xiuhcoatl, appears clutching a fresh heart from a nearby sacrificed individual. In the Codex Selden p. 12, a Xiuhcoatl and eagle share in a feast of blood and hearts with the sun god. 19 In a study of the Aztec Calendar Stone, Beyer (1921: 97-109) interpreted the Xiuhcoatl as the band of blue sky representing the area occupied by the zodiac at night and as the carrier of the sun on its daily journey. Beyer (1921: 105) specifically looked to an image of the Xiuhcoatl or rather the Mixtec Yahui on Codex Selden p. 30 which depicts the Yahui carrying a solar disk to conclude that the Xiuhcocoa on the Aztec Calendar Stone also served as bearers of the sun. However, as discussed throughout this dissertation, it was the plumed serpent that served as the primary vehicle for the dawning sun. Rather than the path or carrier of the sun, the Xiuhcoatl represents the fiery meteoric solar ray of the sun as shown in Early Postclassic examples of solar disks and tezcacuitlapilli. 211 A major theme discussed throughout this dissertation is the many depictions of warriors found at the site. The Chak Mool sculptures found throughout Chichen Itza express one unique way in which warriors were rendered. The Chak Mool likely grew out of the Terminal Classic, perhaps out of reclining warriors depicted on Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramics which also portrays reclining warriors. The Chak Mool are clearly warriors, probable representations of the heroic souls of warriors in paradise who eagerly await offerings of blood and hearts. In this respect, the Chak Mool warriors are also the same individuals who appear emerging from the maws of plumed serpents with their spearthrowers extended towards cuauhxicalli on the Northwest and Northeast colonnade and the reclining warriors from the Palacio Quemado at Tula. The Chak Mool is a generic representation of the heroic warrior who accepts the offerings of blood and hearts in the cuauhxicalli and perhaps even solar mirrors that are placed on his abdomen. Sacrifice is a creative act and the centrality of the offering on the Chak Mool recalls the many images of reclining figures with world trees growing from their abdomens. This is surely no coincidence and the offerings placed on the Chak Mool most likely reflect this creative act of the sprouting of the world tree. Warriors, including the Chak Mool figures, from both Chichen Itza and Tula share regalia that reflects the theme of paradise. Such objects include the butterfly chest pectoral and the xiuhtotol (lovely continga) piece worn on the front of the headdress. The tezcacuitlapilli solar back mirror worn on the lower back of warriors, represent miniature suns, a burden they carry like the plumed serpent. One of the best Late Postclassic examples can be seen on the back of the Aztec Stuttgart Statuette where a plumed serpent carries a 212 large solar disk with Tonatiuh seated inside (Coltman 2007, 2009). The statuette itself depicts Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli as a Toltec warrior, with the dawning sun on the back also alluding to the tezcacuitlapilli worn by warriors. In many ways, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is the epitome of an Early Postclassic god as he is known at Chichen Itza, the Ixtapantongo rock painting, a carved shell from Tula, and the Grolier Codex (Coe et al. 2015; Mathiowetz et al. 2015). His appearance at Chichen Itza links him to the taking of trophy heads, a theme extending to his standing on the Tzompantli in the later Codex Borgia. Aside from the many stacked skulls on the Tzompantli at Chichen Itza, there are also partially skeletal warriors appearing in a field of flames holding their gruesome trophies which may relate to the martial aspect of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli as trophy head taker. As the ‘Lord of Dawn’, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is a distinct being of the east like the dawning sun and the plumed serpent who are often marked with star signs denoting them as probable representations of Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli. Furthermore, a number of ethnographic accounts describe the plumed serpent that carries the dawning sun as Venus as morning star, in other words, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli. A number of deities have been discussed in this dissertation, many of which can be traced back to the earlier Classic Maya and Teotihuacan. One of the older gods to be found with the earlier Classic Maya is God N, the ultimate world bearer and sustainer of the heavenly vault (see Martin 2015). Goddess O with her skirt of cross bones and eyes is also present, who along with God N is also a world bearer, and together form a primordial couple. Atlantean bearers sustained the world just as they supported the royal throne and ruler, a fine example of cosmic authority mirroring political authority. The Maize God 213 factors into the God N and Goddess O bearers as they sustain the scenes from which the Maize god emerges from a cleft mountain on the upper register of pillars from the Lower Temple of the Jaguars. Another god who appears widely at Chichen Itza and is found much earlier among the Classic Maya is K’awiil, who as a god of abundance, appears most prominently in the Initial Series Group and the Osario Pyramid where he consistently appears as a bringer of wealth with pairs of jade earspools and floating cacao pods surrounding him. One of the major themes of this dissertation has been the ascent of the dawning sun on the road of the plumed serpent. The plumed serpent of course, is the quetzal plumed manifestation of wind and breath that also carries the rain bearing clouds. While the plumed serpent is the major manifestation of K’uk’ulkan or Quetzalcoatl, there was also another aspect of this being discussed throughout this dissertation. The avian wind god, a predecessor to the Late Postclassic Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl, appears throughout the site including a statue of him as atlantean bearer found on top of the Osario (Fig. 2.7b). Another representation of the avian wind god was found in the Caracol wearing the same segmented head band with flower in the center as the witz ‘mountains’ denoting them as Flower Mountain (see Ruppert 1935: fig. 317). As far as I know, no other two beings aside from the witz designated as Flower Mountains and the avian wind god share this specific headband. This may be because the avian wind god is a bringer of music and dance in the house of the sun and can therefore wear the same floral headband as Flower Mountain itself. The most elaborate representations of this deity, however, occur in the Initial Series Group where he appears dancing among objects of wealth and beauty as well as 214 paraphernalia for dance and music (Schmidt 2003, 2011; Taube 2020; Taube et al. 2020). The duck-billed wind beings known as Ik’ k’uh among the Classic Maya are the predecessors to the later Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl of Late Postclassic Central Mexico. Like the plumed serpent, Ehecatl is also a bearer of the sun. Evidence to support this is found among the Classic Maya where two duck-billed Ik’ k’uh support the throne of the sun god, Kinich Ajaw (Chinchilla 1990; Stuart 2009). A greenstone statuette in the British collections depicts Ehecatl carrying the sun on his back much like the plumed serpent does (Seler 1902-1923, 4: 697, 699). Ceramic depictions of an enthroned Quetzalcoatl from San Dieguito, Texcoco, depict him with a large solar disk on his back (Seler 1990-96: V: fig. 86-88). Here he is probably supporting the sun just as his other manifestations as the plumed serpent and Ehecatl do. As mentioned in Chapter 2, one of the more obvious deities that can be traced back to Central Mexico, Tlaloc, not only appears on pillars from the Temple of the Warriors, but had a whole cult dedicated to him, as can be seen from the staggering amount of incesnarios bearing his image at Balankanche and Balamkú. Was this cave cult devoted to this Central Mexican rain god the result of Toltec interaction or longer ties carried over from the entrada into the Peten centuries before? Teotihuacan Tlaloc symbolism certainly took hold in the Maya area and even had a Late Classic resurgence. The Cacaxtla murals in the state of Tlaxcala provide an excellent example of Maya use of Tlaloc imagery which is stylistically closer to that of Maya sites such as Yaxchilan, Dos Pilas, and Aguateca than anything in Central Mexico (Helmke and Nielsen 2014). Tula, quite naturally, had its share of Tlaloc symbolism including a remarkable polychrome image of Tlaloc depicting him as 215 a mortuary bundle wearing turquoise blue earrings marked with the quincunx, the Maya Kan cross frequently appearing in Late Classic portrayals of Tlaloc at sites such as Copan (Fash and Fasquelle 1996: 192). A conservation project in the 1990’s, Sala 2 of the Palacio Quemada at Tula, revealed an offering of marine materials, a tunic made from finely carved shell plaques, and a pyrite mirror with Xiuhcoatl fire serpents (Mastache and Cobean 1998: 121). In an iconographic analysis of the materials from the Sala 2 offering, Taube (n.d.) views it as a Toltec version of a Teotihuacan tradition that saw Tlaloc as a war god. Other images of Tlaloc at Tula include a relief panel from Building J where he appears with an elongated curving upper lip and is grasping a serpent (Mastache and Cobean 1998: fig. 27). A three-dimensional representation of Tlaloc was found in Ballcourt 1. As Mastache and Cobean (1998: 126) note, he appears to wear a similar shell garment to the one found in the Sala 2 offering. Despite being one of the most visited and recognizable sites in all of Mexico, the Early Postclassic urban center of Chichen Itza will continue to be at the center of longstanding debates regarding chronology, interregional interaction, and cultural exchange. As noted in Chapter 1, the issue of chronology in particular has been the topic of much contention over the past several decades (Ringle 2017; Volta et al. 2014). As Ringle (2017: 120) recently noted, while Chichen Itza is described as poorly dated, it is certainly not for want of chronology since it happens to have more radio-carbon dates than much larger sites. However, there is still much disagreement regarding these data sets. Following Braswell and Volta (2014), this dissertation has placed Chichen Itza firmly within the Early Postclassic period, though Ringle’s (2017) recent publication has challenged this 216 chronological interpretation. Aside from chronology, I suspect the interpretation of art and architecture at the site will also continue to be debated. I can only hope that this dissertation contributes in some small way to this discussion. There are a few things I hope will become more accepted in the future literature. The idea of a Toltec conquest or invasion seems rather outdated, until archaeological data can prove otherwise. It seems far more likely that Chichen Itza and Tula had a relationship based on the economic advantages of trade and were tapped into the same ideology that would form a major component of the Postclassic International Style. A direct historical approach regarding solar ideology has served this study well. The artistic and ideological legacy of the Classic Maya found in Late Postclassic Central Mexico and other areas of Western Mesoamerica were likely disseminated by way of the Chichen-Tula relationship (Matos and Solís 2004: 87-88). It is interesting that the sun god known for Chichen Itza does not occur as widely in the art of Late Postclassic Yucatan. I suspect that the sun god in the murals from Mayapan derive from the sun god of Chichen Itza, though they are badly eroded and hard to make out. However, as noted in the conclusion of Chapter 3, most representations of the Late Postclassic Maya sun god of Yucatan are not the sun god of earlier Chichen Itza. Instead, he is typically found to be fanged and bearded, an older, wizened sun god. Furthermore, excellent examples of solar disks appear in the Late Postclassic International Style murals of Santa Rita, Corozal, Belize. Interestingly, solar imagery in Late Postclassic Yucatan pales in comparison to Late Postclassic Central Mexico. Late Postclassic Maya culture has historically been seen as decadent and far inferior to the grandeur of the Classic period. Tatiana Proskouriakoff 217 (1955: 86) for instance, noted that the fall of Mayapan “appears as a dramatic culmination of a long process of cultural decay”. Proskouriakoff wasn’t alone. In the final Mayapan report, A. Ledyard Smith (1962: 269) noted that Mayapan demonstrated a degeneration of the high cultural standards of the earlier Classic while Eric Thompson (1966:45) noted the degeneration in the arts in this last period of the Maya is “heart-breaking”, which is perhaps better than Harry Pollock (1962:16) referring to “an internal dry rot in Maya culture”. However, as Sabloff (2007: 16) noted, he and Rathje began to question the assumption of “decadence” and supposed decline in aesthetic values, noting that religion was still important but different with the loss of dominance by a traditional dynastic elite. As Sabloff (2007: 17) stated: “Postclassic culture was different from the Classic but definitely not decadent”. Late Postclassic Maya culture should not be seen as the debtor but as an active and original culture that emerged from several major collapses and continued to preserve one of the greatest Mesoamerican intellectual traditions (Lacadena 2010: 401). It is time to reevaluate the grandeur and influence of Early Postclassic Chichen Itza on Postclassic Mesoamerican culture and the Late Postclassic International Style. Postclassic Mesoamerican culture and the Late Postclassic International Style are generally conceptualized as coalescing in Central Mexico in the Early Postclassic. The Postclassic saw great diversity of trade goods and the greatest volume of exchange and access to imported goods (Smith and Berdan 2003: 7). This constituted part of a Mesoamerica-wideinteraction-sphere where an interconnectedness of polities could be seen both ideologically 218 and materially (Sabloff 2007: 21) 20. Largely overlooked, however, is the crucial role of Chichen Itza in this formation. The term international style, while widely used regarding the artistic traditions of Postclassic Mesoamerica, was first used in reference to shared visual culture in the Old World (Feldman 2006). The term international style has been adopted for multiple places and time periods and designates the cross-cultural blending of artistic forms. The art style at Chichen Itza was a prelude to symbolism that would manifest in various parts of Mesoamerica during the Late Postclassic (Schmidt 2007: 121). Much like the Hellenization of Italy, the international style developed outside of the Valley of Mexico well before the emergence of the Aztec Empire and may have even laid some of the groundwork for empire (Scheidel 2016: 27). As Smith and Montiel (2001: 264-265) note, the cultural influence of the Aztec empire beyond its borders is hard to assess since many Central Mexican ideas and traits were transmitted to distant areas well before the formation of the empire, in what can be called the Postclassic International Symbol Set signaling the expansion of commercial and cultural networks. Certainly, for Late Postclassic Yucatan, Aztec influence would not have been strong considering they were so late in consolidating power (Lacadena 2010: 392). 20 One of the more interesting examples of foreign components in the Late Postclassic Maya area can be found in the Codex Dresden. In the Venus table, Nahuatl names for deities’ label individuals such as ta-wi-si-ka-la corresponding to Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli and xi-wi-te corresponding to Xiuhtecuhtli (Taube and Bade 1991; Whittaker 1986). 219 A theme deserving of further consideration is the Classic Maya legacy on Western Mesoamerica, particularly in Late Postclassic Central Mexico, and the mechanisms through which this legacy was transmitted. In ancient Mesoamerica, the Classic Maya were recognized for their aesthetic achievements and ability to create “high art”. Tlillan Tlapallan, the “Land of Writing and Painting,” is a Nahuatl place of myth and history evoking the lands far to the east on the Gulf of Mexico, in other words, the land of the Maya. There is a sustained record of a Maya presence in Central Mexico. During the EpiClassic, Maya art was reflected in the murals of Cacaxtla and architecture of Xochicalco. Indeed, the Maya presence in Central Mexico and the artistic legacy in the archaeological record suggests centuries of sustained contact. Much of the Late Postclassic International style emerged as a conscious copying and/or adoption of Maya iconography by non-Mayan peoples after the Classic collapse. This general trend continued into the Early Postclassic with Chichen Itza being celebrated in Early Postclassic Mexico for its art and ideology much like the earlier Classic Maya had been before continuing a trend of Maya-style imitation morphing quickly into its own distinctive and popular mode of elite visual culture. This dissertation has looked at one aspect of this imitation or appropriation of Maya ideas through the lens of Chichen Itza, the source of Late Postclassic Central Mexican solar ideology with Tula being the filter through which these Maya traits and tropes entered (Matos and Solís 2004: 87-88). The sun god of Chichen Itza became an ‘international symbol’ well ingrained not only in Central Mexico but also in the Mixteca-Puebla style as seen in the Borgia Group and Mixtec codices. However, one of the most well known 220 examples would be the monumental Aztec Calendar Stone, an iconic representation of Aztec ideology found on December 17, 1790 in Mexico City’s Plaza Mayor. For over two centuries, scholars have debated what this stone represented and who was represented in the center of the disk (Matos and Solís 2004; Stuart 2016; Villela and Miller 2010). The Aztec Calendar Stone is the most recognizable solar disk known for Mesoamerica. What is not frequently discussed, however, are the Mesoamerican origins of this solar disk that far predate the Aztec Empire. The Aztec Calendar Stone remains one of the more pervasive visual testaments to the contribution of Chichen Itza to the Late Postclassic International style, and more specifically, to Aztec iconography in general. One of the more obvious examples of Classic Maya influence on the Postclassic International Style can be found with the skull and cross bones motif which has origins in Classic Maya ch’een (‘cave’ ‘well’ ‘cistern’) symbolism (Coltman 2018; Vogt and Stuart 2005). This motif continues in the Northern Maya lowlands on low-lying stone platforms from Pucc sites such as Uxmal and Nohpat, and then makes its first formal appearance in Central Mexico on the El Corral altar at Tula, the likely point of dissemination into Late Postclassic Central Mexico where it would appear on Aztec altars and on the skirt of the Aztec earth goddess, Tlaltecuhtli whose watery womb was a fitting metaphor for a cave (Coltman 2018; Taube 2009). While the Chichen-Tula relationship certainly accounts for much of the Maya influence on Late Postclassic Central Mexico, there were other important points of contact through which Maya ideas influenced the International Style. The important site of Cholula used Late Classic Maya technologies in ceramic production and certain religious and ritual ideas seem to have come through these ceramic plates and 221 dishes that were used for feasting (Coltman 2020; Pohl and Coltman 2020). In fact, cultural exchange between Chichen Itza and Tula and the Maya and Cholula should be viewed as two of the primary components in forging what would become the Late Postclassic International Style of which the Mixteca-Puebla and Aztec styles belong. Another influence comes from Isla de Sacrificios. Though understudied, the ceramics from this region reflect Early Postclassic notions of paradise and are stylistically similar to the later Postclassic International Style, particularly in the Mixteca-Puebla or Nahua-Mixtec iconographic system (Taube 2020). The most likely method in which information was disseminated between highland Mexico and the Maya area in the Late Postclassic, was through portable objects that bore writing and imagery such as codices, painted ceramics, carved bone, shell, and painted textiles (Macri 2010; Taube 2010). These items would have been easy to transport in merchant packs where they could then be easily exchanged or purchased (Lacadena 2010: 393). Painted textiles and codices were probably the objects most plausible to be carried. The shared traits between highland Mexico and the Maya, for the most part, seemed to keep their form, meaning, and function (Lacadena 2010: 398). This is certainly true of the sun god and solar symbolism, which formed one of the more pervasive examples of borrowing from the Maya. 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Patrick Culbert, pp. 199-225. School of American Research, Albuquerque, and Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 256 List of Figures 257 Fig. 1.1) LiDAR map of Chichen Itza. 258 Fig. 1.2) Map showing distance between Tula and Chichen Itza (Courtesy of Michael Coe). 259 Fig. 2.1) The Sacred Cenote of Sacrifice, Chichen Itza (Photo by author). 260 Fig. 2.2) Cenote Xtoloc, Chichen Itza (Photo by author). 261 Fig. 2.3) Tlaloc incensarios, Balankanche Cave (Andrews 1970: pl.2). 262 A B C Fig. 2.4a) Profile view of Tlaloc incensario. Note undulating nose of Chahk. Balankanche Cave (Photo by author). Fig. 2.4b) Stela depicting Chahk with goggle eyes of Tlaloc, Late Postclassic Cozumel (photo by author). Fig. 2.4c) Tlaloc incensarios, Balamkú Cave, Chichen Itza (Photo courtesy of Karla Ortega). 263 Fig. 2.5) Stone Tlaloc heads, Chichen Itza (from Ruppert 1952: fig. 150d). 264 A B C Fig. 2.6a) Watery landscape with mountains, waterlily plants, and fish, bottom register, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (Maudslay 1889-1902: III: Pl. 47). Fig. 2.6b) Figures in avian headdresses grasping on to waterlily plants, Uxmal (from Foncerrada de Molina 1965: fig. 44). Fig. 2.6c) Waterscape depicting God N atlantean’s, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (©Bristol Culture). 265 A B C Fig. 2.7a) Probable avian wind being supporting individual with headdress, Palenque (Freidel et al. 1993: fig. 7:14). Fig. 2.7b) Avian Atlantean bearer found on top of the Osario Pyramid (Seler 1990-1996: VI: fig. 108). Fig. 2.7c) Avian being with flower in center of headband, Northwest colonnade (Morris et al. 1931: fig. 44). 266 A B C D E Fig. 2.8a) Ik’ K’uh as subordinates of Lord Chahk, Uxmal Stela 14 (Drawing by author). Fig. 2.8b) Ik’ K’uh as throne bearers, Dos Pilas (Drawing by Oswaldo Chinchilla). Fig. 2.8c) Nine Wind sustaining the watery firmament, Codex Vindobonensis p. 47. Fig. 2.8d) Ehecatl supporting the nightly firmament, Codex Borgia p. 51. Fig. 2.8e) Ehecatl as Atlantean bearer, Tenochtitlan (from Taube 2020: fig. 10.13b). 267 A B C D Fig. 2.9a) God N as spider holding the sun and moon (after Taube 1994: fig. 5b). Fig. 2.9b) Aged God N supporting throne, Sepulturas bench, Copan (from Martin 2015: fig. 4a). Fig. 2.9c) Two aged Itzam sustaining throne holding witz’ (Drawing by David Stuart). Fig. 2.9d) Two Itzam bearers lifting lintel, Laxtunich (from Martin 2015: 6b). 268 Fig. 2.10) God N framed by four serpent heads, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.10.A1). 269 Fig. 2.11a) Four Atlantean God N figures sustain scenes of Maize God emergence (from Schele Matthews 1998: 6.11.A2). 270 Fig. 2.11b) Four Goddess O figures supporting Maize God emergence scenes, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.11.A3). 271 A B Fig. 2.12a) God N as Atlantean bearer, northwest colonnade, Jamb A (after Morris et al. 1931: pl. 68). Fig. 2.12b) Bearded God N Atlantean, south jamb of entrance, Temple of the Warriors (after Morris et al. 1931: pl. 40). 272 Fig. 2.13) Female and male Atlantean bearers, Temple of the Big Tables (from Seler 1990-1996: VI fig. 151-152). 273 A B Fig. 2.14a) Atlanteans holding ceremonial dance fans, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 14-15). Fig. 2.14b) Atlanteans wearing tezcacuitlapilli solar back mirrors, from Temple of the Snails, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 37-38). 274 Fig. 2.15) Color rendition of Atlantean figures supporting throne, Temple of the Warriors (from Morris et al. 1931: pl.6). 275 A B C D Fig. 2.16a) The Maize God resurrection plate (Boston Museum of Fine Arts). Fig. 2.16b) The Maize God emerging from cleft in turtle carapace. Note God N figures emerging from both ends of turtle (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.7). Fig. 2.16c) The Maize God emerging from cleft in turtle earth and holding tropical bird. Note God N emerging from side of shell (K9174). Fig. 2.16d) Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ as Maize god, capstone from Ek’ Balam (drawing by Alfonso Lacadena). 276 A B C D Fig. 2.17a) The Maize God emerging from cleft mountain, Bonampak Stela 1 (from Friedel et al. 1993: fig. 3.8b). Fig. 2.17b) Maize Gods in mountain, Tikal (from Fridel et al. 1993: fig. 3.11b). Fig. 2.17c) Four scenes of Maize god emergence , upper register of God N Atlantean pillars, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (detail from Schele Matthews 1998: 6.11.A2). Fig. 2.17d) Detail of Maize God emergence scene form Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Taube 1994: fig. 1b). 277 A B C Fig. 2.18a) Diving cleft-headed Maize God, Late Postclassic murals, Tulum (López Portillo Guzmán and Quetzalcóatl Esparza Olguín 2018: fig.22) Fig. 2.18b) Late Postclassic Maize God, Tancah, Quintata Roo (after Miller 1982: pl.11). Fig. 2.18c) Late Postclassic cleft headed Maize God, Cueva Manitas, Homun, Yucatan. (Photo by author). 278 A B C Fig 3.1a) Solar motif on tri-pod vessels from Teotihuacan (from Nielsen and Helmke 2018, fig.4.3a). Fig.3.1b) Solar disk from Teotihuacan style vase (from Taube 2015: fig.5.12b) Fig. 3.1c) Nevada de Toluca Stela with solar disk (photo by author). 279 A B Fig. 3.2a) Sculptured head of Kinich Ajaw with k’in sign on head, Palenque (from Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 169, cat. 235). Fig. 3.2b) The sun god from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Painting by Adela Breton (©Bristol Culture). 280 Fig. 3.3) Wooden lintel depicting Sun god, Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Photo by author). 281 A B Fig.3.4a) Sun god wearing double eagle feather in headdress, mural fragment from Temple of the Chacmool (from Morris et al. 1931: pl.142c) Fig.3.4b) Late Postclassic Tonatiuh, Codex Borgia p. 70. 282 Fig.3.5) Ukit K’an Leek Tok’ as apotheosized sun god, Ek Balam Stela 1. Note solar cartouche with radiating centipede heads (from Taube 2015: fig.15.11b). 283 A B Fig.3.6a-b) Probable Sun god holding bundle of quetzal plumes. Note jester god element on brow and emanations in front of face, Terminal Classic Pabellon ceramic excavated at Ceibal (Photo courtesy of Takeshi Inomata). 284 A B C-D Fig. 3.7a) Breath element before probable sun gods face, detail of Pabellon ceramic, Ceibal (Photo courtesy of Takeshi Inomata). Fig. 3.7b) Breath element before the face of Ukit K’an Leek Tok’, detail of Ek’ Balam, Stela 1 (from Taube 2015: fig. 15.11b). Fig. 3.7c-d) Elaborate serpent and floral breath element before sun god’s face, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Maudslay 1889-1902: III: Pl 35). 285 A B Fig. 3.8a-b) Pabellon ceramic depicting probable sun god being given jade and spearthrower by two Ka’awiil attendants (K 6560). 286 Fig. 3.9 Late Classic Ñuiñe mural depicting solar deity in disk. Note jade objects. (Photo by Juan Cervantes). 287 A B C D Fig. 3.10a) Sun God on jaguar throne in solar disk, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.21.A6E). Fig.3.10b) The sun god sitting in solar disk, Temple of the Wall Panels (from Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 2a). Fig.3.10c) The sun god of Chichen Itza sitting in solar disk (Lincoln 1990: fig. 7). Fig. 3.10d) The sun god sitting on jaguar throne in his solar disk, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 2c). 288 A B C D Fig. 3.11a) The Classic Maya sun god in solar disk, Structure N5-21, Dos Pilas (Drawing by David Stuart). Fig. 3.11b) Solar disk with fret-nosed solar breath serpent appearing at corner, fragmented stela 4, Yaxchilan (Drawing by David Stuart). Fig. 3.11c) Figure with large step-fret serpent solar breath element in solar disk, Yaxchilan Stela 3 (from Taube 2004: 80, fig. 8d). Fig. 3.11d) Unprovenienced stone fragment depicting an armed solar deity in disk. Note four centipede heads at corners (from Chinchilla 2020: fig.8.2b ). 289 A B C D Fig. 3.12a) Solar disk with k’in sign in center, Stela 1, Tikal (from Taube 1994: fig.31d). Fig. 3.12b) Solar disk with k’in sign in center, Stela 10, Piedras Negras (from Taube 1994: fig. 31e). Fig. 3.12c) Solar disk with four radiating centipede heads from corners, House A, Palenque (Taube 2013: fig. 5.9b). Fig.3.12d) Solar disk with k’in sign in center and yax markings (from Houston et al. 2009: fig. 2.21c). 290 B A C Fig. 3.13a) Sun God sitting in solar disk with four step-fret solar breath serpents at corners, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Painting by Adela Breton. (©Bristol Culture). Fig. 3.13b) Solar disk with step fret serpent at corner, fragment of Stela 4, Yaxchilan (Drawing by David Stuart). Fig. 3.13c) Sun god in solar disk with step fret solar breath serpent flanked by two probable ancestors. Note two quetzal birds flanking disk (from Robertson 1985: fig. 358). 291 A B C D E F G H Fig. 3.14a) Step fret solar breath serpent before the face of the sun god, North temple of the Ballcourt (from Freidel et al. 1993: fig. 8:32). Fig. 3.14b) Sun God with solar breath element, Quirigua Stela D, E4 (from Houston et al. 2006: fig. 4.15c). Fig. 3.14c) Nun Yax Ayiin exhaling the fret-nosed serpent, Stela 31, Tikal (from Taube 2004:fig.8a). Fig. 3.14d) Sun god appearing as focal point of headdress attached to the end of a skyband, House A, Pier D, Palenque (from Robertson 1985: fig. 77). Fig. 3.14e) Sun God wearing the centipede headdress and exhaling the fret-nosed solar breath element, Hieroglyphic Stairway 3, Yaxchilan (after Taube 2003: 411, fig. 3b). Fig. 3.14f) Fret nosed serpent emerging from floral earspool, Yaxchilan Lintel 24, (from Friedel et al. 1993: fig. 4:2e). Fig. 3.14g) The fret nosed serpent emerging from flower on headdress of Itzamnaj, (detail of K4339). Fig. 3.14h) Fret nosed serpent emerging from flower, detail of Palenque Temple of the Cross, (from Freidel et al. 1993: fig. 4:2g). 292 A B C F D G E H Fig.3.15a) Glyph for Xiuhcoatl appearing on upper register of pillar from Temple of the Warriors (from Taube 2012: fig. 11a). Fig. 3.15b) Wooden depiction of Xiuhcoatl with stars on snout, Cenote of Sacrifice (from Taube 2012: 11b). Fig. 3.15c) Xiuhcoatl from turquoise tezcacuitlapilli, Chichen Itza (Turner 2017: fig.7c). Fig. 3.15d) Step-fret serpent, detail of solar disk from the mural in the Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 2d). Fig. 3.15e) Late Postclassic Xiuhcoatl, Tanayuca. (Photo by author). Fig. 3.15f) Xiuhcoatl, Codex Aubin 20. Fig. 3.15g) Xiuhcoatl as name glyph with spiked fret step solar breath element, Codex Azcatitlan. Fig. 3.15h) Xiuhcoatl with fret step solar breath element, Codex Cozcotzin p. 11v. 293 Fig.3.16) Temple of the Warriors, aerial view from drone (courtesy of Dominique Meyer). 294 Fig.3.17 Descending sun god amid rain of flowers, jewels, and flames, upper registers, Temple of the Warriors (drawings by Karl Taube). 295 B A C Fig.3.18a-c) Descending Tonatiuh from solar disk, Late Postclassic Codex Borgia p.7, Codex Vaticanus B p.7, and Codex Cospi p.7. 296 A B D E Fig, 3.19a) Uhuk Chapaht Tz’ikiin K’inich Ajaw, aspect of sun god adapted by rulers (from Nehammer Knub et al. 2009: fig. 8). Fig. 3.19b) K’inich Yax K’uk’ Mo’ or “Sun-faced First (or Green) Quetzal Macaw”, apotheosized as the sun god, from Structure 10L-16, Copan (from Taube 2004, fig. 13.13a). Fig. 3.19c) Ruler impersonating sun god, Stela A, Copan (from Baudez 1994: fig. 4a). Fig. 3.19d) Ruler impersonating sun god. Note ribbed headdress with centipede exhaling quetzal plume breath, detail of Laxtunich panel. (Drawing by David Stuart). 297 A B Fig. 3.20a Bird Jaguar IV dressed as sun god, Yaxchilan Stela 9. (Drawing by James Porter in Taube 2004: fig. 13.14c). Fig. 3.20b Ruler impersonating the Sun God wearing skeletal centipede headdress and exhaling fret-nosed solar breath serpent. Note k’in signs decorating body. Monument from vicinity of Palenque (from Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 125, cat.124). 298 A B C D F E Fig. 3.21a) Sun God sitting on jaguar throne in solar disk, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.21.A6E). Fig. 3.21b) Solar deity sitting on jaguar throne, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 2c). Fig. 3.21c) Solar deity sitting on jaguar throne inside solar disk, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.29. B6). Fig. 3.21d) The red jaguar throne with tezcacuitlapilli on back, Castillo-sub ( Fig. 3.21e) Mixtec sun god, ‘One Death’, sitting on jaguar throne over mat. Codex Nuttall p. 10r. Fig. 3.21f) Mixtec sun god, ‘One Death’, sitting on jaguar throne, Codex Nuttall p. 79. 299 A B C Fig. 3.22a) Early Postclassic Toltec style rock painting of the sun god surrounded by solar disk, Ixtapantongo, Estado de Mexico (from Viallgra Coleti 1954: fig. 27). Fig.3.22b) Tonatiuh in solar disk, Codex Borgia p. 23. Fig.3.22c) Maya sun god in temple facing plumed serpent, detail of vase, Tula museum (from Taube 1994: fig.15b). 300 A B C Fig.3.23a) Toltec style Fine Orange vase, Bilimek Collection (Photo: Weltmuseum Wien, Vienna). Fig.3.23 b)) Detail of probable sun god from vase in Bilimek collection (Photo: Weltmuseum Wien, Vienna). Fig.3.23c Chichen Itza sun god riding feathered serpent, north wall of north ballcourt (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.51.F4). 301 A B C D E F Fig.3.24a) Solar disk fragment found in the 19th century, likely dating to the Postclassic period (from Matos and Solis 2005: fig. F19). Fig.3.24b) Solar rays from sun disk, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (©Bristol Culture). Fig. 3.24c) Solar rays from capstone, Initial Series Group (color photo by T.A. Willard, 1920, Autry National Center, Southwest Museum, Los Angeles, photo no. N43284). Fig.3.24d)Solar disk from mural at Las Higueras, Veracruz (from Taube 2010: fig. 16f). 3.25e) Late Postclassic solar ray from incesnsario fragment, Tancah (from Andrews 1943: fig. 28g). 3.25f) Solar rays from the Aztec Calendar stone, (detail from Matos and Solís (2004: F44). 302 A B C D Fig. 3.25a) Solar disk with four serpent or centipede heads radiating from corners like earlier Classic Maya examples, Codex Paris p. 21. (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 268). Fig. 3.25b) Sun god with curved fret-nosed solar breath element, Late Postclassic Codex Dresden p.12. Fig. 3.25c) Individual with Classic Maya solar breath element, Mayapan Stela 5 (from Houston et al. 2006: fig.7.8a). Fig.3.25d) Descending solar deity inside solar disk, mural from Late Postclassic Mayapan. (Drawing courtesy of John Pohl). 303 Fig. 3.26) Gilded copper disk depicting the Late Postclassic bearded Maya sun god, from Sacred cenote (from Lothrop 1952: fig. 60). 304 A B C D Fig. 3.27a) Late Postclassic Maya Sun god, detail of Late Postclassic copper disk from Sacred cenote (Lothrop 1952: fig. 60). Fig. 3.27b) The severed head of the bearded and fanged sun god. west wall mural from Santa Rita, Belize, (from Gann 1900: plate 31). Fig. 3.27c) Mask depicting Late Postclassic Maya bearded sun god. Note avian headdress, Late Postclassic Mayapan (Photo by author). Fig. 3.27d) The young Tonatiuh in front of eastern jade temple. Note quetzal headdress similar to Late Postclassic Maya examples. Codex Fejervery-Mayer, p. 33. 305 A B C Fig. 3.28a) Sun disk with four radiating solar rays, murals from Santa Rita Corozal, Belize (from Gann 1900: pl. 30). Fig. 3. 28b) The plumed serpent passing through a solar disk (from Gann 1900: pl. 29). Fig. 3.28c) The sun rising up through the flowery sound of a drum. Note heart directly above sun god, Late Postclassic mural from Santa Rita, Belize (from Chinchilla 2015: fig.6). 306 A B Fig. 3.29a) Aztec drum depicting huge solar disk on both sides with a hole placed directly through the center, Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Photo by author). Fig. 3.29b) Two figures flying with arm placed through solar disk, Late Postclassic Tecomaxtlahuaca (from Pohl and Winter 2014: fig.6b). 307 Fig. 3.30a) Tonatiuh in solar disk, Humbolt plaque (Beyer 1921: 18). Fig. 3.30b) Tonatiuh on Humboldt disk (Drawing by Karl Taube). Fig. 3.30c) Tonatiuh in solar disk, back of Stuttgart Statuette (Landesmuseum Württemberg). Fig. 3.30d) Tonatiuh in flying position within solar disk. Note Early Postclassic club, fragment from ceremonial brazier (from Matos and Solis 2004: fig. 25). 308 A B Fig.4.1a) The Castillo, Chichen Itza. Note plumed serpent balustrades facing towards Sacred Cenote (Photo by author). Fig.4.1b ) Detail pf plumed serpent balustrade from Castillo with circular breath element emerging from corner of mouth (Photo by author). 309 A B C D Fig. 4.2a) The Teotihuacan plumed serpent. Note complete quetzal plumage over body and rattle on tail. (Photo from Cleveland Museum of Art). Fig.4.2b) Intertwined plumed serpents with quetzal crests disgorging torrents of water from their mouths (from Culbert 1993: fig. 50b). Fig. 4.2c) Plumed serpent carrying the rain god, Tlaloc, it its mouth (from Séjourné 1966: fig. 195). Fig.4.2d) Quetzal crested plumed serpent carrying an impersonator of the rain god, Chahk, in its mouth, Uxmal (from Seler 1917: fig. 37a-b). 310 A C B D E Fig. 4.3a) Maya bearded dragon with Ik’ sign in mouth (from Taube 2003: fig.11.13b). Fig. 4.3b) Bearded plumed serpent from Cacaxtla murals (from Magaloni et al. 2013: fig.3.10). Fig. 4.3c) Plumed serpent with beard, House of the Governor, Uxmal (from Seler 1917: fig. 108). Fig. 4.3d) Plumed serpent with quetzal crest and beard, detail of wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (detail from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig.6.29. B6). Fig. 4.3e) Quetzal crested and bearded serpent. Note probable water spewing from mouth, incised Toltec shell (after Aguilera and Hernández 2005: 30-33). 311 A C B D E Fig. 4.4a) Floral tail with quetzal plumes, Xochicalco (Drawing by Karl A. Taube). Fig. 4.4b) Yellow floral tail with quetzal plume breath, Cacaxtla (from Magaloni et al. 2013: fig. 5.17b). Fig. 4.4c) Yellow floral tail with quetzal plume breath, from plumed serpent, Cacaxtla. Fig. 4.4d) Plumed serpent rattle tails with floral blossom and quetzal breath, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Coe et al. 2015: fig. 27d-e ). Fig.4.4e) Plumed serpent rattle tail with floral blossom and quetzal breath emanations (detail from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig.6.29. B6). 312 A B C D E Fig.4.5a) Seated ruler with large quetzal breath volute emerging from nostril, Late Classic Xultun murals. (Drawing by Heather Hurst). Fig.4.5b) Plumed serpent exhaling quetzal plumes, Xochicalco (from Taube 2005: fig. 20e). Fig.4.5c) K’awiil as a quetzal with quetzal plume breath emanations, façade of Osario pyramid, Chichen Itza (Drawing by Karl Taube). Fig.4.5d) Individual with a feather as breath element in front of face, Terminal Classic Puuc murals of Mulchic (Piña Chan 1964: fig. 3). Fig.4.5e) Quetzal plume emanating from individuals’ mouth, denoting breath or exalted speech. Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca. 313 A B C D E Fig.4.6a) The plumed serpent figure wearing gold mask, Lower Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.18a). Fig.4.6b) Gold mask found in Sacred Cenote (from Coggins and Shane 1984: fig. 32). Fig.4.6c) Detail of plumed serpents on top of gold goggle mask. Note Ik’ wind signs (from Taube 2005: fig. 19d). Fig.4.6d) Plumed Serpent figure wearing gold serpent mask, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Painting by Adela Breton (©Bristol Culture). Fig.4.6e) Atlantean figure wearing Tlaloc rain mask. Painting by Adela Breton (©Bristol Culture). 314 A B C Fig.4.7a) Shell serpent goggles, note quetzal crests and beards, both attributes of Maya plumed serpents (from K6777). Fig.4.7b) A pair of mother of pearl serpent goggles depicting Maya plumed serpents (Museum of Fine Arts, Houston). Fig.4.7c) Shell goggles found during excavations of Tlajinga 33. Note similarity to the Maya examples previously noted yet this pair lacks the beard and quetzal crest, both attributes of Maya plumed serpents (from Robb 2017 fig. 130). 315 A B C Fig. 4.8a) A Classic Maya example of serpent balustrades, EVII-sub pyramid at Uaxactun. Fig. 4.8b) The plumed serpent serving as both breath of Flower Mountain and as groundline for individuals offering food and water to Maize god, North Wall, San Bartolo (Painting by Heather Hurst). Fig.4.8c) Pair of plumed serpents emerging as breath of the mountain, Holmul façade, Building A, western side (from Estrada Belli 2016: fig. 4a ) 316 A B C Fig.4.9a) Plumed serpent heads on balustrade, Temple of the Feathered Serpent, Teotihuacan (Photo by author). Fig.4.9b) Plumed serpent ascending stairway from frescoes of Cacaxtla House A (from Domínguez and Urcid 2013: fig. 12.10). Fig.4.9c) Narrow stairway leading up to Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Note rattle tail and plumed body ascending stairway. (Photo by author). 317 A B C Fig.4. 10a) Venus platform, between Castillo and the Sacred Cenote. (Photo by author). Fig.4.10b) Plumed serpent with fish along undulating body, Venus platform between Castillo and Sacred Cenote. Photo by author). Fig.4.10c) Large stone altar found on top of Tzompantli depicting two plumed serpents whose bodies are followed by small fish (Drawing by Karl Taube). 318 A B C D Fig.4.11a) Plumed serpent from X Orange Vessel with Lamat sings above. Note floral tail with quetzal breath plumes (from Sharp 1975: fig. 4). Fig. 4.11b) Plumed serpent with star signs along body, Mercado (from Taube et al. 2020: fig. 20c). Fig.4.11c) Side of Venus platform next to Osario pyramid. Note Ek’ signs along body (from Fernández Souza 1996: fig. 30). Fig.4.11d) Plumed serpent figure with star signs, Ixtapantongo rock painting near Tula (from Taube 1992: fig. 74d). 319 A B C D Fig.4.12a) Sun god facing plumed serpent figure, wooden lintel from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Baudez and Latsanopoulos 2010: fig. 2c). Fig.4.12b) Probable sun god using plumed serpent as vehicle, jade plaque from Sacred Cenote (from Pillsbury et al. 2017: 159). Fig.4.12c) Sun god sitting on jaguar throne using plumed serpent as celestial vehicle (from Freidel et al. 1993: fig. 8:32). Fig.412d) Sun god sitting in solar flower and flanked by feathered water serpents, Las Monas, Chichen Itza (Photo by author). 320 A B C Fig.4.13a) Exterior decoration of the Lower and Upper Temple of the Jaguars which is composed of two intertwined serpents carrying tezcacuitllapilli. (Photo by author). Fig.4.13b) Corner piece from the Temple of the Jaguars depicting plumed serpent carrying solar mirror (from Seler 1990-96: 6: fig. 88). Fig.4.13c) Structure 2D1, Upper Temple of the Jaguars, depicting plumed serpent carrying floral form of solar disk back mirror (from Tozzer 1957: II: fig. 129). 321 A B C Fig. 4.14a) Intertwined plumed serpents carrying floral solar motif, Castillo-sub (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 86). Fig. 4.14b) Intertwined plumed serpents carrying solar flower, Structure 4, Late Classic El Tajin (from Taube 2015: fig. 514a). Fig. 4.14c) Intertwined plumed serpents carrying a solar flower, murals from Late Postclassic Tulum (Drawing by Karl Taube). 322 A B Fig. 4.15a-b) Warriors paired with plumed serpents standing over tezcacuitlapilii (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 18, 19) 323 B A D C E Fig. 4.16a) Reclining or flying figure using plumed serpent as means of transport, Gold disk H, Sacred Cenote (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 254). Fig. 4.16b) Warrior emerging from cloud serpent, (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 254) Fig. 4.16c) Reclining Toltec Warrior using plumed serpent as vehicle, Corral, Tula (Drawing by Karl Taube). Fig. 4.16d) Toltec avian warrior with plumed serpent. Note floral tail with quetzal plumage (from Covarrubias 1957: fig. 118). Fig. 4.16e) Quetzalcoatl named 1 Reed letting blood with large plumed serpent standing on woven mat, Late Postclassic rock carving, Cerro de la Malinche (from Covarrubias 1957: fig. 117). 324 A B D E G C F H Fig.4.17a) Late Postclassic serpent head, Mayapan. Note sinuous breath elements at corner of mouth (from Smith 1962: fig. 6i). Fig.4.17b) Late Postclassic serpent head, Mayapan. Note sinuous breath elements at corner of mouth (from Smith 1962: fig. 6k). Fig. 4.17c) Quetzal crested plumed serpent, Late Postclassic graffiti, Chichen Itza (from Taube 1992: fig. 76d). Fig. 4.17d) Quetzal crested feathered serpent, Codex Madrid p. 18 (from Taube 1992: 76e). Fig. 4.17e) Serpent balustrade with quetzal crest, Late Postclassic San Angel, Quinata Roo (from Taube 1992: fig. 76c). Fig. 4.17f) Large carved serpent head, probably head of balustrade, Late Postclassic Viste Alegre, Quintana Roo (from Rissolo 2007: fig. 4). Fig. 4.17g) X Fine Orange style vase depicting serpent. Note floral tail with quetzal plume emanations from blossom, Late Postclassic Chac Mool, Quintana Roo. (Photo by author). 4.17h) Late Postclassic serpent, Codex Laud p. 23. 325 A B C Fig. 4.18a) Quetzalcoatl devouring individual. Note Early Postclassic floral tail. Codex Borbonicus, p. 14. Fig. 4.18b) Back of the Stuttgart Statuette depicting plumed serpent carrying solar disk with Tonatiuh in center. Fig. 4.18c) Spear-thrower depicting plumed serpent rising out of pool with Venus signs and a daisy chain of hummingbirds attached to body (Saville 1925: pl. XI). 326 B C A D Fig. 4.19a) Late Postclassic Aztec imitation X Fine Orange vessel depicting Tezcatlipoca, Offering? Templo Mayor (from Moctezuma and Solis 2002: fig. 279). Fig. 4.19b) Detail of imitation X Fine Orange vessel depicting conch symbols on upper rim (from Moctezuma and Solis 2002: fig. 279). Fig. 4.19c) Detail of plumed serpent on imitation X Fine Orange vessel. Note quetzal plumes being exhaled from nostrils (from Umberger 2007: fig. 13). Fig. 4.19d) Plumed serpent from Xochicalco. Note quetzal plume breath exhaled from nostrils (from Taube 2005: fig. 20e). 327 Fig. 4.20) Plumed Serpent on Flower Mountain, Sixteenth-Century Palencia Cross (from Garcia Barríos and Parada López de Corselas 2014: fig. 11a). 328 A B D C E Fig. 5.1a) Warriors on four sided pier from Upper Temple of the Jaguars wearing the butterfly as chest pectoral (from Seler 1990-1996: V: fig. 111-112). Fig. 5.1b) Warrior wearing large tezcacuitlapilli, Temple of the South Ballcourt (from Schele and Matthews 1998: 6.42c3). Fig.5.1c) Butterfly chest pectoral worn by Atlantean warrior columns, Tula (Photo courtesy of John M.D. Pohl). Fig. 5.1d) Warrior wearing butterfly element in headdress (after Maudslay 1889-1902: III: Pl 49). Fig.5.1e) Toltec warrior wearing large mosaic turquoise butterfly chest pectoral, Tula (after Tozzer 1957: fig. 555). 329 A B D C E Fig.5.2a) Mixcoatl wearing Toltec butterfly chest pectoral on Fine Orange style vessel, Templo Mayor (from Umberger 2007: fig. 13) Fig.5.2b) Xiuhtecuhtli wearing turquoise chest pectoral and xiuhtotol bird in headdress, Codex Borbonicus p.9. Fig.5.2c) Turquoise chest pectoral on female warrior, detail of incensario in Kislak Collection, Library of Congress, Washington D.C. (Photo by author). Fig.5.2d) Goddess on back of Bilimek Pulque vessel wearing butterfly chest pectoral (from Seler 1990-1998: V: fig. 49). Fig.5.2e) Warrior wearing butterfly chest pectoral and tezcacuitlapilli, Malinalco murals (from Garcia Peyon 1947). 330 A B Fig.5.3a) Tezcacuitllapilli solar back mirror fragment, Initial Series Group. Note blue pigment indicating it would have been painted turquoise blue. (Photo by author). Fig.5.3b) Warrior with plumed serpent wearing floral tezcacuitlapilli back mirror, El Castillo. From Seler 1990-96: VI: Fig. 123). 331 A C B D E Fig.5.4a) Late Classic solar mirror, Stela 10 Piedras Negras (from Taube 1994: fig. 31e). Fig.5.4b) Tezcacuitlapilli, Caracol Stela 5 (From Beetz 1981: fig. 6). Fig.5.4c) Solar mirror back rack, Stela 22, Tikal (Drawing by William Coe, University Museum, University of Pennsylvania). Fig.5.4d) Solar back mirror with skeletal centipede heads, Stela 5, Tikal (Drawing by William Coe, University Museum, University of Pennsylvania). Fig.5.4e) Solar back mirror, Yaxchilan Stela 11 (from Taube 1992: fig. 19c). 332 A B C D E F Fig.5.5a) Petaled solar mirror with k’in sign in center wrapped in coils of plumed serpent, detail of Abaj Takalik Stela 4 (Drawing by James Porter in Taube 2004: fig. 11b). Fig.5.5b) Solar mirror with k’in sign in center, Tikal Stela 1 (from Taube 1994: fig. 31d). Fig.5.5c) Scalloped or petaled rim of tezcacuitlapilli recovered from Temple of the Chac Mool (from Schele and Friedel 1990: fig. 10:11). Fig.5.5d) Solar petaled back mirror worn on back of Atlantean Toltec warriors, Tula (from Taube 2012: fig.11d). Fig. 5.5e) Petaled tezcacuitlapilli solar mirror, Late Postclassic Mixtec, Codex Becker P. 1. Fig.5.5f) Petaled tezcacuitlapilli solar mirror, Late Postclassic Mixtec, Codex Nuttall, p.84. 333 A B C D Fig.5.6a) Tezcacuitlapilli found on top of the Jaguar throne, Castillo-sub (Photo by Jorge Pérez de Lara / Raíces Jorge García Payón). Fig.5.6b) Solar disk with four radiating Xiuhcocoa (from Fig.5.6c) Tezcacuitlapilli found in the Temple of the Chacmool (from Morris et al. 1931 ) Fig.5.6 d) Tezcacuitlapilli from Tula (Archivo Digital de las Colecciones del Museo Nacional de Antropología, INAH-CANON). 334 A B C D E Fig.5.7a) Reclining figures, Pabellon ceramic (Drawing by Cherra Wyllie). 5.7b) Reclining warriors in Toltec regalia on Pabellon vessel (from Taube 2020: fig. 10.11c). 5.7c) Reclining warriors, Pabellon vessel (Drawing by Cherra Wylie). 5.7d ) Reclining figure, Altar de Sacrificios (from Wyllie 2002: fig. III.C). 5.7e) Reclining figure, Pabelleon vase, Ciebal (from Sabloff 1975: fig. 385). 335 A B C D Fig. 5.8a) Warrior in reclining position and in supernatural flight, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Painting by Adela Breton, courtesy of Bristol Museum). Fig. 5.8b) Flying warrior, Las Monjas (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 575). Fig. 5.8c) Jade bead depicting flying warrior soul towards individual playing a conch (Proskouriakoff 1974: 106, fig. 6) Fig. 5.8d) Jade bead depicts a warrior in supernatural flight holding a sacrificial knife (Proskouriakoff 1974: 106, fig. 8). 336 A B C D Fig. 5.9a) Flying Toltec warrior with outstretched spearthrower, Palacio Quemado, Tula (Marco Antonio Pacheco / Raíces). Fig. 5.9b) Flying Toltec warrior, oyohualli pendant (after Ekholm 1961: fig.2. ) Fig. 5.9c) Flying Toltec warrior, Late Postclassic teponaztli drum (from Saville 1925: PL.XXXIIIb). Fig. 5.9d) Flying warrior using plumed serpent as vehicle, detail of spearthrower, British Museum (from Pasztory 1983: pl. 293). 337 Fig. 5.10) Reclining figure holding torch. Note goggles on face, Platform of Eagles and Jaguars (photo by author). 338 A B C D Fig. 5.11a-b) Chak Mool wearing butterfly chest pectoral of warriors, Castillo-sub (Photos by author). Fig. 5.11c) Chak Mool with trophy heads, Temple of the Chac Mool (Photo by author). Fig. 5.11d) Chak Mool wearing butterfly chest pectorl. Note knife appended to arm, Tula. (Photo by author). 339 A B C Fig. 5.12a) Leafy forest arbor holding severed heads, Late Classic Maya vase (K3924). Fig. 5.12b) The Cementario Platform, Terminal Classic Uxmal (Photo courtesy of David Stuart). Fig. 5.12c) Stone altar depicting skull, cross bones and eyes, Terminal Classic Nohpat (from Mayer 2010: fig. 20). 340 A B Fig. 5.13a) Skull and cross bones platform, Tenochtitlan (from Batres 1902: 45). Fig. 5.13b) Skeletal figure being doused with a bowl of blood while standing on a skull and cross bone platform, Codex Magliachechiano 88r. 341 A B Fig. 5.14a-b) The Tzompantli at Chichen Itza (Photos by author). 342 A B D C Fig. 5.15a) Partially skeletal warriors holding severed heads, Tzompantli (Photo by author). Fig. 5.15b) Partially skeletal warrior with snakes and flames emanating from body (from Seler 1990-1996: VI: fig. 237). Fig. 5.15c) Partially skeletal warrior with skeletal legs and dart points on bottom of feet, Tzompantli (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 461). Fig. 5.15d) Partially skeletal warrior with snakes and flames emanating from body (from Seler 1990-1996: VI: fig. 238). 343 Fig. 5.16a-c ) keletal Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli holding severed head from mural in Temple of the Warriors (from Morris et al. 1931:Pl. 164). 344 A B Fig. 5.17a) Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli standing on tzompantli, Codex Borgia p.19. Fig. 5.17b) Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli standing on tzompantli, Codex Borgia p.45. 345 B A C D Fig. 5.18a) Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli wearing star skirt, Temple of the Warriors (from Coe et al. 2015: fig. 22c). Fig. 5.18b) Descending insect warrior soul, Mitla murals (Drawing by author). Fig. 5.18c) Descending 1 Motion and 1 Death, Codex Selden p. 1. Fig. 5.18d) Insect warrior soul, Mitla murals (Drawing by author). 346 A B C D E F Fig. 5.19a) Mask with large butterfly ornament over face, Teotihuacan (from Berrin and Pasztory 1993: cat. 67). Fig. 5.19b) Tiquisate censer depicting Teotihuacan butterfly soul rising out of watery pool before Flower Mountain (from Taube 2006: fig. 5b). Fig. 5.19c) War Serpent with central figure wearing Teotihuacan nose ornament, Temple of the Warriors (Photo by author). Fig. 5.19d) War serpent wearing Teotihuacan nose ornament, Venus platform (from Seler 1990-96: VI: fig. 242). Fig. 5.19e) War Serpent wearing butterfly nose ornament, Tula (from Taube 2000: fig. 911d). Fig. 5.19f) Xiuhcoatl with warrior soul in maw, detail of Aztec Calendar Stone (from Turner 2017: fig.7d ). 347 A B C Fig.6.1a) Disembodied deity head consuming insides of prone sacrificial victim, Late Classic Maya vase (K1377). Fig.6.1b) Breaking of fourth wall by sacrificial victim on stone altar in front of stela (Drawing by Alexandre Tokovinine) Fig.6.1c) Effigy censer depicting ruler holding heart. Note sun god as base of incense burner. (Boston Museum of Fine Arts 1988.1228a). 348 A B C D Fig.6.2a) Tlaloc symbol with teeth and blood emerging from fanged mouth (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 210). Fig.6.2b) Warrior wearing Tlaloc mask. Note fangs and blood scroll, Cacaxtla (from Helmke and Nielsen 2014: fig. 2.7a). Fig. 6.2c) Tlaloc with bloody heart in front of him, Teotihuacan (from Chinchilla 2019: fig. 2c). Fig. 6.2d) Tlaloc face surrounded by 18 skulls, Copan (Photo by Karl A. Taube). 349 Fig.6.3) Tri-pod vessel with warrior holding knife with heart stuck on it. Note the tri-lobe blood motif on heart, Teotihuacan (from Berrin and Pasztory 1993: cat. 137). 350 A B D C Fig.6.4a) Eagles with tri-lobed blood motif, Tula (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 444, 445). Fig.6.4b) Eagle clutching heart, Chichen Itza (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 435). Fig.6.4c) Eagle devouring blood from sacrificed victim, Codex Porfirio Diaz. Fig. 6.4d) Eagle devouring heart and blood, Codex Cospi. p.7. 351 Fig.6.5) Three scenes of sun god and plumed serpent pair with cuauhxicalli of hearts between them, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars, (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.29. B6). 352 A B C Fig.6.6a) Cuauhxicalli full of hearts and sun god, detail of wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars (Schele and Matthews 1998: fig.6.29. B.6). Fig.6.6b) Cuauhxicalli full of hearts and sun god, detail of wooden lintel, Upper Temple of Jaguars (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig.6.29. B.6). Fig.6.6c) Offering bowl full of hearts and sun god, Late Postclassic Dresden Codex (from Houston et al. 2006: 3.21b). 353 A B C D E Fig.6.7a) Cuauhxicalli, Berlin (Photo: Art Resource). Fig.6.7b) Detail of hearts on cuauhxicalli rim (from Seler 1990-96: III: fig. 9). Fig. 6.7c) Cuauhxicalli with eagle plumes and hearts (from Seler 1990-1996: III: fig. 1). Fig.6.7d) Cuauhxicalli with eagle plumes, hearts, and blood (from Seler 1990-1996: III: fig. 2). Fig. 6.7e ) Eagle plumed cuauhxicalli, Codex Borgia, p. 42 (from Beyer 1921: fig. 11). 354 A B Fig. 6.8a) Cuauhxicalli, interior of vessel depicting Olin sign, Vienna. Fig.6.8b) Cuauhxicalli, bottom of vessel depicting Tlaltecuhtli, Vienna. 355 A B C D E F G Fig. 6.9a) Cuauhxicalli with darts, northwest colonnade (from Morris et al. 1931: pl.124). Fig. 6.9b) Cuauhxicalli with darts, bench from Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 16). Fig. 6.9c) Cuauhxicalli with darts piercing hearts, Tula (from Jiménez García1998: fig. 165). Fig. 6.9d) Cuauhxicalli with darts. Note eagle plumes on rim of vessel, Tula (from Jiménez García 1998: fig. 166). Fig. 6.9e) Cuahxicalli with darts piercing bloody hearts, Codex Borgia, p. 49 (from Beyer 1921: fig. 10). Fig. 6.9f) Cuauhxicalli with darts piercing bloody hearts, Codex Borgia p. 59 (from Beyer 1921: fig. 12). Fig. 6.9g) Cuauhxicalli with dart. Note hearts on rim of vessel. Detail from Teocalli of Sacred Warfare (from Umberger 2010: fig. 3). 356 A B C Fig. 6.10a) Warriors emerging from plumed serpents with spear-throwers pointed towards cuauhxicalli, NW colonnade, Chichen Itza (from Morris et al. 1931, pl. 124). Fig. 6.10b) Warriors emerging from plumed serpents with spear-throwers pointed towards cuauhxicalli. Note darts stuck in vessel. NW colonnade, Chichen Itza (from Taube 2015: fig. 5.19e). Fig. 6.10c) Cuauhxicalli with darts, NW colonnade, Chichen Itza. 357 A B Fig. 6.11a) Warrior emerging from plumed serpent towards cuauhxicalli. Note solar disk in serpent coils, NE colonnade. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10311722422. Fig. 6.11b) Detail of plumed serpent with solar disks in coiled body, NE colonnade. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10311722420. 358 A B Fig. 6.12a) Sun god extending spearthrower towards cuauhxicalli of hearts, wooden lintel, Upper Temple of the Jaguars (from Schele Fig. 6.12b) Tonatiuh extending spearthrower towards heart and stream of blood, Codex Borgia p. 49. 359 A B C D E Fig. 6.13a) Descending sun god, upper register of pillar, Temple of the Warriors (Drawing by Karl Taube). Fig. 6.13b) Representation of heart sacrifice with warrior above descending from maw of serpent with spearthorwer extended towards victim (Drawing by George Stuart). Fig. 6.13c) Bejeweled quetzal bird feeding from yellow blossom, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003). Fig. 6.13d) Descending bird drinking stream of blood from floral vessel, Codex Borgia p. Fig. 6.13e) Descending bird consuming contents from vessel, Codex Porfirio Diaz. 360 A B Fig. 6.14a) The plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxicalli offering between them, detail of Temple of the Wall panels (from Baudez and Latsanopoulas 2010: fig. 9a). Fig. 6.14b) Plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxcialli and sacrificial stone (Drawing by Karl Taube). 361 Fig. 6.15) Plumed serpent and sun god pairing with cuauhxicalli, Upper Temple of the Jaguars. Painting by Adela Breton. (©Bristol Culture). 362 A B Fig. 6.16a) Bloody heart in front of plumed serpent, Teotihuacan (from Séjourné 1959: fig. 132). Fig. 6.16b) Blood symbol in front of plumed serpent, Teotihuacan (from Séjourné 1966: fig. 112). 363 A B Fig.6.17a) Warriors with plumed serpents flanking cuauhxicalli, NW colonnade (after Morris et al. 1931, vol. II: pl. 124). Fig. 6.17b) Warriors with plumed serpents flanking cuauhxicalli. Note above scene of cuauhxicalli between two plumed serpents, Initial Series Group, (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 16). 364 A B Fig. 6.18a) Scene of hear sacrifice with plumed serpent present, mural from Upper Temple of the Jaguars (©Bristol Culture). Fig. 6.18b) Scene of heart sacrifice with plumed serpent in forefront, mural from Temple of the Warriors (from Morris et al. 1931: v. II: pl. 145). 365 A B Fig. 6.19a) Flying reclining warriors flanking cuauhxicalli, Palacio Quemado, Tula (from Acosta 1956: fig. 16). Fig. 6.19b) Reconstruction of Palacio Quemado, Tula (Drawing reconstruction by Fernando Getinos and Samara Velázquez). 366 A B C D Fig. 6.20a) Chak Mool excavated from the Platform of Eagles and Jaguars (Photo by author). Fig. 6.20b) Chak Mool, Initial Series Group. (Photo by author). Fig. 6.20c) Reclining warriors, Pabellon vase (from Taube 2020: fig. 10.11c) Fig. 6.20d) Reclining Toltec warrior, Palacio Quemado, Tula (from Taube 2020: fig. 10.11e) 367 Fig. 6.21) Figures holding circular objects over their chests representing centrality (from Acosta 1957: la. 28). 368 A C B Fig. 6.22a) Detail of Chak Mool with flat circular surface on abdomen fit for a bowl or disk. Note trophy head on side, Temple of the Chacmool. (Photo by author). Fig. 6.22b) Chak Mool with flat circular surface on abdomen, Temple of the Warriors. Note butterfly chest pectoral, Temple of the Warriors (Photo by author). Fig. 6.22c) Surface of the Chak Mool from the Castillo-sub (Photo by author). 369 Fig. 6.23) The reclining Pakal with world tree sprouting from abdomen, Palenque (from Martin 2006: fig. 8.5) 370 Fig. 6.24) Individual sacrificed on platform with blood forming a sprouting plant from wound (K9227). 371 Fig. 6.25) Reclining women with trees of wealth and beauty emerged from abdomens (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 72). 372 A B C D Fig. 6.26a-b) Reclining figures with possible cacao trees sprouting from abdomen, Tula (from Jiménez García 1998: fig. 114, 115). Fig. 6.26c) Skeletal goddess with world tree emerging from abdomen. Note water mirror in background. Codex Borgia p. Fig. 6.26d) Goddess with cactus and eagle symbolizing Tenochtitlan, back of Teocalli of Sacred Warfare (from Umberger 1984: fig. 5). 373 Fig. 6.27) Xochiquetzal with world tree emerging from solar disk on abdomen, detail of Codex Borgia p.44. 374 A B D C Fig. 6.28a) Tlaltecuhtli monolith with gaping hole in chest (drawing by author). Fig. 6.28b) Greenstone goddess with water mirror over abdomen, Templo Mayor (drawing by author). Fig. 6.28c) Tlaltecuhtli monument where Tezcatlipoca is born from jade jewel on chest (from Nicholson 1958: fig. 4). Fig. 6.28d) Skeletal goddess giving birth to skeletal figure through jade jewel on chest, Codex Borgia p. 33. 375 A B Fig. 6.29a) Sacrificed Xipe Totec upon scaffold with sun god descending to drink blood (from Caso 1956). Fig. 6.29b) Tonatiuh drinking blood of sacrificed Xipe Totec. Note petaled mirror behind Xipe Totec. Detail of carved spear-thrower (from Taube 2009: fig. 14e). 376 A B Fig. 6.30a) Xipe Totec sacrificed on scaffold with blood dripping on tezcacuitlapilli, Codex Nutall p. 84 Fig. 6.30b) Xipe Totec sacrificed on scaffold. Note blood dripping down on tezcacuitlapilli, Codex Becker p.1. 377 A B C Fig. 6.31a) Blood pouring from solar disk, Codex Fejervary-Mayer p. 33. Fig. 6.31b) Blood emerging from solar disk with dart piercing heart, Codex Borgia p. 48. Fig. 6.31c) Blood emerging from solar disk with dart piercing heart, Codex Cospi p.2. 378 A B C D Fig. 6.32a) Tonatiuh in sky drinking stream of blood from sacrificed Xipe Totec below, detail of bone rasp (from Taube 2015: fig. 5.20c). Fig. 6.32b) Tonatiuh receiving blood, Late Postclassic carved bone (from Matos and Solís 2004: fig. 34). Fig. 6.32c-d) Heart sacrifice with heart held up towards sun. Note stream of blood from heart to sun, Mapa de Cuauhtinchan 2. 379 Fig. 6.33) The Mixtec sun god, One Death, in his solar disk with large torrent of blood extending from disk to platform, Codex Vindobonensis p.23. 380 Fig. 6.34) Gold disk from Sacred Cenote depicting heart sacrifice, (Drawing by Linnea Wren). 381 Fig. 6.35) Gold disk depicting flying warrior and scene of sacrifice (Lothrop 1952: fig. 30). 382 Fig. 6.36) Gold disk from Sacred Cenote depicting reclining flying warrior and probable scene of sacrifice (from Lothrop 1952: fig. 33). 383 Fig. 7.1) A fragment of a carved vase from Teotihuacan depicts a blowgunner hunting quetzal birds in a cacao tree (Coe and Coe 1996: 54) 384 A B C D Fig. 7.2a Witz wearing headband with flower in center, Osario platform (from Taube 2004: fig. 14c). Fig.7.2b Witz wearing floral headband (from Tozzer 1957: fig. 339). Fig.7.2c Flower Mountain, Temple of the Warriors (Photo by author.) Fig. 7.2d Witz wearing floral headband denoting Flower Mountain, Temple Xtoloc (from Tozzer 1957: 340). 385 B A C Fig. 7.3a Flower Mountain and War Serpent, Temple of the Warriors (Photo by author). Fig. 7.3b Warrior with Flower Mountain on upper register and War Serpent on lower register. Drawing of Column 2 at Northeast Colonnade. Photographic. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10310432916. Fig. 7.3c) Feathered Serpent paired with War Serpent, Temple of Quetzalcoatl (Photo by author). 386 A B C Fig.7.4a) Pottery jar, fragment - Initial Series group, W. mouth of W. passage. Photographic. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10310434779. Fig.7.4b) Tripod bowl, 3/4 complete, redware incised 4 holes drilled in side - S Temple ad. Photographic. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10310422697. Fig. 7.4c) Carved fine orange bowl, white slip - Temple of Initial Series S. court (?). Photographic. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10310422785 387 Fig. 7.5 Jadeite ornament, jade rosette fragments, jade ear-plug plaque fragments. Ground Stone, Ornaments. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AWSS35953_35953_38643836. 388 A B C Fig. 7.6a) Flower with quetzal plumes emerging from blossom, Initial Series Group, Chichen Itza (from Schmidt 2003: fig.35). Fig. 7.6b) Yellow flower with quetzal plume breath or aroma, (K 9109). Fig. 7.6c) Quetzal plumes emerging from flower, (K 4019). 389 Fig. 7.7) Flowering trees with birds, pillars from Castillo Viejo (from Schmidt et al. 2008: 12). 390 A B Fig. 7.8a) Flowering tree with birds and butterflies, balustrade from south temple (Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 6.41, C2). Fig. 7.8b) Flowering tree with birds and butterflies (Tozzer 1957: fig. 184). 391 A B C Fig. 7.9a) Yellow flower, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig.36) Fig. 7.9b) Bejeweled quetzal feeding on yellow flower, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig.36). Fig. 7.9c) Descending quetzal feeding from yellow flower, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003). 392 A B D C Fig. 7.10a) Floral design with bifurcated breath emanations emerging from sides, Las Monjas (Photo by author). Fig. 7.10b) Floral textile pattern, Las Monjas (photo by author). 7.10c) Plumed serpent with floral textile background, Uxmal (Photo by author). 7.10d) Monument from Queretaro depicting avian sun god in solar paradise. Note floral textile pattern denoting paradise (Drawing by Karl Taube). 393 A B C D Fig. 7.11a) Large solar flower with probable sun god inside. Note breath emanations emerging from both side of flower, Las Monjas (Photo by author). Fig. 7.11b) Quatrefoil flower with Ik’ style breath emanations coming from four directions, House E, Palenque (from Robertson 1985: fig. 42). Fig. 7.11c) Bowl with floral forms and K’in signs with bifurcated breath elements, Late Classic Guatemala (from Smith 1954: fig. 118.2h). Fig. 7.11d) Bifurcated breath elements emerging from flower, Aztec Chalco box. Note similarity to breath emanations from solar flower from Las Monjas (from Matos and Solís 2002: cat. 60). 394 A B C D Fig. 7.12a) Large solar disk as aromatic flower with sun god sitting inside. Painting by Adela Breton (©Bristol Culture). Fig. 7.12b) Flower from East wall, Palenque (from Robertson 1985: fig. 42). Fig. 7.12c) Solar disk with breath elements coming from both sides and floral elements below. Painting by Adela Breton (©Bristol Culture) Fig. 7.12d) Flowers from House E, Palenque (Robertson 1985: fig.43, 49). 395 A B Fig. 7.13a) Floral k’in sign with four radiating blossoms, Codex Dresden p.52b Fig. 7.13b) Sun god appearing in disk marked by four blossoms, Codex Dresden p. 56a. 396 A B C D Fig. 7.14a) Descending sun god in a rain of flames, flowers, and jewels (from Taube 2015: fig. 5.9a). Fig. 7.14b) Dancing jaguar amid flames and jewels denoting solar paradise, Initial Series Group (from Taube et al. 2020: fig. 39a). Fig. 7.14c) Warrior below descending sun god appearing among same floral and jeweled elements of the solar paradise (from Morris et al. 1931: pl.118). Fig. 7.14d) Woman with offering of jade earspool pair. Note flowers and jewels in background.Drawing of Column 4 at the Court of 1000 Columns. Photographic. Place: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Collection: Carnegie Institution of Washington. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AHARVARD_10310433027. 397 B A Fig. 7.15a) Warrior standing atop Flower Mountain. Note falling elements around figure denoting solar paradise as k’uh (from Taube 2004: fig. 15c). Fig. 7.15b) Reclining warriors or priests holding torches with jewels and other elements denoting the solar paradise, Temple of the Warriors (from Morris et al. 1931: fig. 26). 398 Fig. 7.16) Sky band with jewels and other precious elements in compositional space, cover of sarcophagus, Temple of the Inscriptions, Palenque (from Schele and Matthews 1998: fig. 3.17). 399 A B C D E Fig. 7.17a) Signs for kan “yellow”and yax ‘blue-green”, indicating abundance, flows from hands of ruler, Yaxchilan (Houston 2014: 50; Helmke 2017: fig. 7). Fig. 7.17b) K’uh flowing from hands of ruler, detail of Yaxchilan Stela 1 (from Stuart 2005: fig. 11.5b). Fig. 7.17c) Saurian being known as the Starry Deer Crocodile in a sea of k’uh (from Taube 2009: fig. 18b). Fig. 7.17d) Akan, the Maya god of inebriation, in a sea of k’uh (from Freidel et al. 1993: 216). Fig. 7.17e) Pair of Ik’ k’uh sitting among elements denoting k’uh (from Taube et al. 2020: fig. 47c). 400 Fig. 7.18) Templo Mayor vessels depicting Tezcatlipoca and Mixcoatl as Toltec warriors in paradise (from Umberger 2007: fig. 13). 401 A B Fig. 7.19a) Avian wind god dancing among articles of wealth and preciousness including cacao, bells, and jade earspools (Drawing by Stephen Houston). Fig. 7.19b) Items of wealth, beauty, and music including jade, quetzal plumes, bells, gold, flowers, and drum, (Codice Duran: fig.21). 402 B A Fig. 7.20a) Tree of wealth and beauty with jade earspools and cacao, Temple of the Owls (from Schmidt 2003: fig. 41). Fig. 7.20b) Crocodile world tree as cacao tree, stone fragment from Osario group (from Schimdt 2011: fig.3). 403 A B Fig. 7.21a) Bust of probable solar deity that formed base of pillar from the Temple of the Owls pier (from Martin 2005: fig. 8.15) Fig. 7.21b) Bust of probable sun god from pillar at Temple of the Owls (from Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 103, cat. 50). 404 A B C D Fig. 7.22a) Bust of probable sun god from pillar at Temple of the Owls (from Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 103, cat. 50). Fig. 7.22b) Sun God, Stela 13, Machaquila (from Graham 1967: fig. 67). Fig.7.22c) The Maya sun god from Uxmal. Note breath emanations with bust from Temple of the Owls (Photo by author). Fig. 7.22d) Sun god sculpture from Pyramid of the Magician, Uxmal, Museo Mundo Maya (Photo by author). 405 A B C D Fig. 7.23a) Vase depicting head of sun god as base of cosmic tree, Early Classic Maya from Merchants Barrio, Teotihuacan (from Taube 2003: fig. 11.10g) Fig. 7.23b) Vase depicting paradise with sun as world tree, Oxkintok, Yucatan (from Romero Blanco and Méndez 2015: 151, cat. 190). Fig.7.23c) Plumed serpent carrying sun upon world tree, Late Postclassic turquoise mosaic (Drawing by Linda Schele). Fig. 7.23d) Mixtec sun god, One Death, as world tee, Codex Colombino p. 3. 406 Fig. 7.24) Late Classic Maya vase depicting solar deity holding cacao plumes as K’awiil gestures towards cacao tree (K631). 407 Fig. 7.25) Capstone depicting K’awiil in solar paradise holding jade earspools (from Martin 2005: fig. 8.14). 408 A B C D Fig. 7.26a) Sun God from Cotzumalhuapa, Bilbao Monument 3 (from Chinchilla 2013: fig. 4). Fig. 7.26b) Solar deity on El Castillo Monument 1, Cotzumalhuapa (from Chinchilla 2013: fig. 6). Fig. 7.26c) Probable sun god in maw of plumed serpent, Monument 7, Bilbao (from Chinchilla 2013: fig. 5). Fig. 7.26d) Fragment depicting sun god in National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Guatemala (from Chinchilla 1998: fig. 42). 409 A B Fig. 7.27a) Bilbao stela 21(Drawing by Oswaldo Chinchilla). Fig. 7.27b) Individual holding cacao plant, jade plaque in Cotzumalhuapa style, Sacred Cenote (from Pillsbury et al. 2017: cat. 161). 410 A B Fig. 7.28a) Celestial deity with drum in Flower World paradise, Monument 4, Bilbao, Cotzumalhuapa (from Chinchilla 2013: fig. 4). Fig.7.28b) Celestial deity with drum in Flower World paradise, Monument 6, Bilbao, Cotzumalhuapa (from Chinchilla 2013: fig. 5). 411 A B C Fig. 7.29a) Avian wind god holding drum, Initial Series Group (from Schmidt 2003: fig.44). Fig. 7.29b) Ceramic drum depicting head of avain wind god (from Prager and Braswell 2016: fig. 5b). Fig. 7.29c) Wooden teponaztli depicting face of Ehecatl (from Seler 1990-1996: VI: fig. 121). 412 A B C D E F G Fig. 7.30a) Flying figure on Pabellon ceramic (from Wyllie 2002: fig. III.I3). Fig. 7.30b Xochipilli in flying position (from Von Winning 1990: fig.13b). Fig. 7.30c) Warrior in flying position, plaque from Templo Mayor (from Umberger 2007: fig. 4). Fig. 7.30d) Quetzalcoatl in flying position, Codex Borgia p. 37-38 (Taube 2020: fig. 10.9d). Fig. 7.30e) Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl in flying position, Late Postclassic flat stamp, Texcoco (from Enciso 1953: 128, fig. II). Fig. 7.30f) Ixtlilton flying on side of Aztec teponaztli drum (from Taube 2020: fig. 10.9f). Fig. 7.30g) Tonatiuh in flying position, Late Postclassic plaque (from Nicholson 1993: fig.5) 413 A B Fig. 7.31a) Hummingbirds sucking nectar from flowers, Malinalco murals (from Peterson 1993: fig. 78) Fig. 7.31b) Sixteenth Century gold Palencia Cross depicting Flower World (Garcia Barríos and Parada López de Corselas 2014: fig. 9a). 414