Chicomecóatl

Chicomecóatl, green stone, Aztec/Mexica, 1300-1521 CE, height 32.5 cms., Musée du Quai Branly, Paris.

This image was carved from a thin curved stone plaque, similar in style to masks from the Mezcala culture of Guerrero. The contours of the piece show the silhouette and finery of the goddess Chicomecóatl. The chubby face, the wide-open eyes and mouth are framed by an imposing amacalli headdress and a pair of circular ear ornaments. Notice below a necklace of seven pearls, from which hangs a golden disc distinctive of aquatic deities and of fertility.


Adapted from Azteques: La Collection de Sculptures du Musée du Quai Branly, by Leonardo López Luján and Marie-France Fauvet-Berthelot, 2005, p.44.

Photo by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore.