Aztec War Drum

Malinalco huehuetl carvings illustration

Here’s a unique chance to study closely the carvings on this very fine copy of the famous metre-high ‘tlalpanhuehuetl’ (Aztec war drum) made by Jaime Flores C. from Malinalco, exhibited as part of a major crafts festival (Festival del Gran Premio) at FONART, Mexico City, autumn 2005. The original instrument from Malinalco (now in the Toluca City Museum) came to London in 2002-3 for the Aztecs exhibition and again in 2009-10 for the Moctezuma exhibition. (Written/compiled by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)

The upright huehuetl drum (Pic 1) was ‘king’ of Aztec percussion instruments. Usually covered in jaguar skin and played with the hands, it took centre stage, alongside its ‘queen’ the teponaztli [see our full-length feature on the teponaztli - follow the link below] in accompanying every major Aztec festival. The beautiful drum illustrated here was - amazingly - still being played in important religious ceremonies up until 1894, when it was finally transferred to a museum.

All the carved reliefs relate to war, starting with the Aztec atl-tlachinolli (‘water-fire’) symbol and metaphor for sacred war, often placed in front of the mouth like a form of speech, song or shout. Look at the examples shown in Pic 2 - then spot this important symbol in different places on the drum.

Probably the most prominent element on the drum is the Aztec symbol for our present World Era, Nahui Ollin or ‘4-Movement’ (Pic 3). You can see and learn more of this key symbol in our Aztec Calendar section; associated closely with the ‘movement’ of the sun in the sky, the term ‘describes that particular human activity whose object is to overcome inertia... [Through actions] gravity and inertia are replaced by the spiritual law of ascent, of the creative impulse... Brilliant symbol of the great hidden truth, the Sun daily points out to man the way of salvation’ (Laurette Séjourné).

The idea of an (eagle) warrior spirit ascending to the Sun is clearly visible on the opposite side of the drum. His costume includes eagle-feather wings and quetzal-feather tail (Pic 4). ‘He carries a stylized flower and a fan, and the elaborate song-scrolls of “poetry” are scattered about him as he flies upwards: a warrior spirit released to the Sun...’ (Inga Clendinnen).

Malinalco, 60 kms south-west of Mexico City/Tenochtitlan, was an Aztec town known for its devotion to the cult of Eagle and Jaguar Warriors. All round the drum Eagle and Jaguar ‘warriors’ can be seen celebrating the ascending warrior. ‘[At the same time they] flourish the paper banners of sacrifice [Pic 5] as they dance, and their speech scrolls form the Water and Fire sign which stands for Sacred War. The eagle’s tail and wing-feathers are studded with sacrificial knives. The creatures weep as they dance. Are they already victims, or do they weep in ecstatic commitment to their ultimate fate?’ (Inga Clendinnen).

The roll-out illustration of the carvings (top of page) - originally drawn by J. L. Quiroz - was first reproduced in Ignacio Marquina’s classic study ‘Arquitectura Prehispánica’ (INAH/SEP, Mexico City, 1951, p. 215). Try watching the video and ‘reading’ the drawing at the same time!

UPDATE JULY 2023
Highly respected ethnomusicologist and percussionist from LA Chris García asked if he could borrow our replica Malinalco tlalpanhuehuetl for a residency at Churchill College Cambridge (‘2023 Multicoloured and Melodious Dimensions of the Americas Playshop’). We didn’t hesitate! Chris gave a masterful presentation on ancient Mexican music for a family audience. We learned several interesting facts about the use of the drum in ancient times: if a war drum it would have had a jaguar skin, if played in any other context (ritual, palace, ceremonial...) it would have had a deer skin. To heat/tune the skin copal incense would have been burnt in an incensario and placed under the drum. The drum would have been cut from a single DEAD tree trunk - being drier, the sound from the wood would be brighter.
Read an extended write-up of the Cambridge event through the link below...
NOTE: The wood itself was a dense, fine textured tropical hardwood called Granadillo or Guatemalan Rosewood (granadillo cubilquitzensis) - See Arqueología Mexicana no. 178, Jan-Feb 2023).

Our teponaztli feature Learn more about the Malinalco war drum...‘Drumming up support in battle’Read a description {italicin Spanish} of the original drum, in {italicArqueología Mexicana}‘Multicoloured and melodious dimensions of the Americas: music, colour, and craft playshop’Extensive information on the (tlapan)huehuetl drum from Chris García

Comments (9)

Christopher Garcia

19th Aug 2023

huehuetl,
it is the one drum that I usually don’t travel with, and in those situations I show a video of myself playing the drum, as there is nothing quite like that drum being played, resonating in a room
and letting the participant’s feet feel the vibrations shaking the ground.
Your generosity, graciousness, hospitality, and kindness are greatly appreciated as is your relentless work with MEXICOLORE and everyone who contributes to sharing the information.
The presentation would not have been as powerful without the drum.
ABRAZOS, BENDECIONES Y GRACIAS

Mexicolore

Thank you, Chris, for your kind words. We were delighted to help and will always be willing to do so again. Your educational work - and your musical talent - is unique and hugely appreciated, as is your friendship and support. Very best, Ian and the Mexicolore team.

Christopher Garcia

12th May 2014

MALINALCO DRUM
MOUNTING THE DRUM HEAD
I have noticed that the images of the actual Malinalco drum do not show that the drum head was tacked, nailed or stapled on, i.e., the rim looks smooth. If you GOOGLE the MALINALCO DRUM you will find that most of the images online are replicas and show pegs, and/or something else holding the head on. I just read your article on glue in ancient times which got me thinking about it. Does this mean that the head was glued on in ancient times or was the top part of the drum removed to show the rim “clean”?
If you look up the TENANGO huehuetl to compare you will see that the drum looks like something other than glue was used as it looks damaged the Malinalco drum does not appear to be damaged. I only know of 1 drum maker in Los Angeles that does not mount his huehuetl heads with staples, nails, or rope.
TUNING
I have also read that torches or heat were used to make the drum head tighter in ancient times. You would think that there would be burn marks at the base of the drum or inside the drum if this was true. Most of the time we just put the drum in the sun for the head to get tighter and only when absolutely necessary do we use a hair dryer as there are usually no outlets around to utilize one.
In ancient times it is documented that the heads were jaguar, deer or javelina, now most people use cow, which is a much thicker head AND most people now play with sticks instead of hands even though there are no images or writing documenting people playing with anything other than their hands, i.e., I would think that the drum would not be as stretched if one were to play with their hands.
GRACIAS

Mexicolore

All excellent points, Chris. Your experience as a professional drummer combined with your interest as a serious researcher make for a particularly valuable contribution...

Benjamin Parkins

28th Oct 2013

Thanks again for a still very timely response! This info is great for when I present my assignment at the end of the week. The more informed I can be regarding the artifacts context, the better. It is, after all, an assessment focussing on the value of cultural practices, whose context is equally as important as the practice itself.
Also, it may help you to know that I’ve found some info on the possible timbers, used: the l=most likely candidate is a Mexican swamp connifer called “ahuehuete”, similar to cypress. Also walnut and oak have been used. The oak of mesoamerica is going to be different from those in other parts of the world - faster growing in a tropical climate, therefore less dense fibres, and a high silica content from growing near water. The ahuehuete was known as “the drum-tree, growing beside the water”. Here’s where I discovered this:
http://books.google.com.au/books?id=VGLT-pJDxcYC&pg=PA44&lpg=PA44&dq=huehuetl+malinalco+size&source=bl&ots=gjCiEbUP5k&sig=6cCnFATR0lYv-UFelyxgh8Ensg8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hr5pUtTTEYSRrAfP5oHwDg&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=huehuetl%20malinalco&f=false
Also, I notice little soot stains up the sides from where the fire was lit under the drum to tension the hide, so that’s a little touch I’ll be sure to include. Thanks again for your helpfulness!

Mexicolore

Cheers, Benjamin. That’s a great source - Robert Stevenson’s Music in Aztec and Inca Territory - and one we strongly recommend to any serious student of Aztec music.
Good luck with your initiative, and please keep us posted!

Benjamin Parkins

24th Oct 2013

Greetings all at Mexicolore!
I’ve been dipping in to your webpages throughout this week and find them not only unusually helpful and insightful but highly inspiring. I am a prop maker studying at NIDA in Sydney, Australia and you’ve convinced me to make a prop replica of the huehuetl from Malinalco. I have a “World Style” assignment to complete by the end of next week so the sooner you could give advice on the construction of this drum, the better, I’m afraid! I’d be incredibly grateful if you could make some comments, specifically, though, I need to recreate the details that most people would miss, like mistakes the artist may have made. There’s a chip on the sun image on the drum that might have been a stray chisel? And the wavy cuts down the side of the drum - any suggestions on what that is from? Has the drum been a victim of poor storage or tomb robbing? That sort of thing.

Mexicolore

Many thanks, Benjamin, for your kind words and details of your intriguing assignment. Forgive the less-than-instant response: being a hard-working teaching team this is a hectic time for us and chances to do ‘extra-mural’ research are few and far between. We can only at this stage pass on a few anecdotal extra bits of info that may or may not be of use to you.
We know the drum measures 98 cms in height, and 52 in diameter; its circumference is approx 1 m 53 cms, the the thickness of the drum wall averages 4 cms. None of the sources we’ve consulted are able to confirm which wood was used in its construction. Its history would be truly fascinating to explore - having still been played in public festivals in Mexico up until 1894, when the former governor of Toluca transferred it to the city museum. (In 1975 it passed into the collection of the museum at Teotenango, and in 1987 it returned to Toluca). If the similar case of the original Aztec teponaztli tongue drum of Tepoztlan is anything to go by, this drum will have survived being housed in a variety of different - probably secret - local homes over the years and several attempts to steal it from the local community.
There’s little doubt that this drum was a genuine Aztec instrument of war, that would have roused the citizens of Malinalco in their ritual ceremonies and struck fear into the hearts of prisoners due to be sacrificed and the pounding beat on its jaguar skin would have been heard by the Spanish captain Andrés de Tapia and his soldiers in their conquest campaign.
Every commentator on the subject compares its carvings with the quality of a codex page, to be read and interpreted in similar fashion. Rolled out, it recreates the dance of Eagles and Jaguars in the festival of 4-Movement, in honour of the Sun, culminating in the sacrifice and rising to heaven of the Sun’s Messenger...

Christopher Garcia

10th May 2013

For a slightly different interpretation of the images on this drum PLEASE read pages 68 and 69 of El HueHuetl de Malinalco by Javier Romero Quiroz (1958)
PAZ
cg

Marycharlotte

2nd Jan 2013

Hi everybody, I am writing an essay on the Aztec music and I find your information really helpful. How can I write this page on my bibliography? Thank you

Mexicolore

You should quote the title of the article (top of page), the author (Ian Mursell), the URL, and the date you accessed it. We’re afraid we don’t include on the website the date of authorship/uploading of each article, but the above should be enough. Let us know if you need more... Cheers, and Happy New Year!

Bob Cox

16th Sep 2012

They make them in Tizatlan, Tlaxcala, Mexico.

Mexicolore

Thanks for this info, Bob.

moises Sanchez

22nd Jan 2009

what would the average price of this antique beauty cost

Mexicolore

At a guess, we reckon a minimum of around $500 dollars.

calypzo reyes

13th Nov 2008