30 May 2025 / 10 House
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Find out moreWhat was the symbol for the Mexica themselves?
ORIGINAL QUESTION received from - and thanks to - Koatl: What was the symbol for the Mexica themselves? Other groups seem to have symbols for themselves, not just the individual cities, but I haven’t seen one for the Mexica. Just for Tenochtitlan and the War Banner. I do recall seeing one once that looked similar to an agave plant for Mexicapan, but I was not sure. (Answered by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)
Great question! Though it’s true that the Mexica of Tenochtitlan are typically the protagonists in their own pictorials - so they don’t really need to mark themselves in a special way - there are a few images in the codices and on stone sculptures that indicate when they need to distinguish themselves from other peoples - particularly on the long migration from Aztlan to the Basin of Mexico. The most obvious symbol is the water-fire glyph atl-tlachinolli representing war. In the Codex Boturini, the Mapa de Sigüenza (pic 1) and the Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca this symbol can clearly be seen identifying the Mexica as a clan.
Not only does the war glyph specifically name the Mexica place of origin Aztlan in the Codex Boturini (follow ‘You are no longer called Aztecs’ link below for more) but this association is strengthened by the symbolic presence of an eagle - representing the Mexica tribal god Huitzilopochtli (pic 2) and distinguishing them from the Mexica of Tlatelolco - grasping the war emblem in its beak.
It’s worth noting at the same time that in both Boturini and the Historia other symbolic attributes are added to emphasise the calling of the Mexica and their future destiny: bow-and-arrow, hunting net, shield-and-arrows...
One other symbol which some might say marks the Mexica out, since they emphasised it more and more in their later history, is the ‘4-Movement’ glyph, identifying the present world era - of which the Mexica saw themselves fervently as the guardians - and visible most famously at the heart of the ‘Sunstone’ (pic 3).
Picture sources:-
• Pic 1: public domain (annotated by Mexicolore)
• Pic 2: public domain (top); photo by Ana Laura Landa/Mexicolore (bottom)
• Pic 3: graphic by Phillip Mursell, based on line illustration of the Sunstone by - and courtesy of - Tomás Filsinger.
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