30 May 2025 / 10 House
Which other animals were associated with the moon apart from the rabbit?
Classic image of the rabbit in the moon, adapted from Codex Borgia pl. 71 (detail)
ORIGINAL QUESTION received from - and thanks to - Maria: What animals were associated with the moon/the dark besides the rabbit/hare and do we know why? (regarding the symbolisms). (Answered by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)
Just one, as far as we know: the marine shell (caracol in Spanish, tecciztli in Nahuatl). The shell gives its name to the rich, vain and haughty Aztec god Tecciztécatl - sometimes written Tec(t)ziztecatl - who, after four unsuccessful attempts, jumped into the fire at Teotihuacan at the creation of the Fifth Sun - to become the moon (after humble Nanahuatzin beat him to it to become the sun). Believed to be the son of rain god Tlaloc and water goddess Chalchiuhtlicue, Tecciztécatl led a privileged childhood in the watery paradise of Tlalocan; according to Salvador Mateos Higuera, other children, having died a watery death by drowning, were encouraged in Tlalocan to shout out the name of the new young god. ‘Whether on command or because they happened to spot a marine shell at the time, they all exclaimed “Tecciztécatl! Tecciztécatl! Tecciztécatl!” and a shell became his badge, his hieroglyph, his name, “Lord of the Shell”’ (our translation).
In a rare image of Tecciztécatl in the codices (see picture 1), ‘a large pink and white conch shell behind his head, topped by a yellow blossom, alludes to his name, while the white shell ring on his chest, usually worn by Tezcatlipoca, connects him with this nocturnal god...’ (Quiñones Keber 1995:172)
Sources/references:-
• González Torres, Yólotl (1981) El culto a los astros entre los mexicas, SEP DIANA, México DF
• Mateos Higuera, Salvador (1993) Los dioses creados, vol. III, Enciclopedia gráfica del México antiguo, Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público, México DF
• Quiñones Keber, Eloise (1995) Codex Telleriano-Remensis, Ritual, Divination and History in a Pictorial Aztec Manuscript, University of Texas Press, Austin.
Picture sources:-
• Main: image scanned and adapted from The Codex Borgia: A Full-Colour Restoration of the Ancient Mexican Manuscript by Gisele Díaz & Alan Rodgers, Dover Publications, New York, 1993
• Pic 1: image scanned from Quiñones Keber, op cit.
Comments (2)
Taytay
18th Jun 2023
Oh interesting! Thank you!
Taytay
17th Jun 2023
Oh I love the idea of the kids of Tlalocan playing that game with the shells! That’s so cute!
Also, I had a question about Nanahuatzin- is he the son of Xochiquetzal or Itzpapalotl? I’ve seen both stated.
Mexicolore
We’re not aware of this connection. We know he was a relatively minor solar deity created by Quetzalcóatl.
Classic image of the rabbit in the moon, adapted from Codex Borgia pl. 71 (detail)
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