The Mysteries of the Monolithic Aztec Goddess called Cōātlīcue
By Ruben C. Cordova
The monolithic Coatlicue is surely one of the most fearsome, imposing, and complex sculptures in world culture. Among Aztec works, its fame is eclipsed only by the Stone of the Sun. Nonetheless, its significance—and even its identity—is a subject of much debate among scholars. The wholesale destruction of Indigenous cultures, artifacts, and belief systems at the hands of the Spanish conquerors has complicated efforts to interpret this statue.
The statue’s modern history began in 1790, when it was discovered with the Stone of the Sun in Mexico City’s main square, which was built over the ruins of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán. Noteworthy enough to be published by Antonio León y Gama in 1792 (who identified it as Teoyaomique), the two sculptures had antithetical destinies before their prominent placement in the National Museum in 1887 and the National Anthropology Museum in 1964...
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The statue’s modern history began in 1790, when it was discovered with the Stone of the Sun in Mexico City’s main square, which was built over the ruins of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán. Noteworthy enough to be published by Antonio León y Gama in 1792 (who identified it as Teoyaomique), the two sculptures had antithetical destinies before their prominent placement in the National Museum in 1887 and the National Anthropology Museum in 1964...
Subscribe to the New PRS Journal to read on...
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