BELL PENDANT

MIXTEC

900-1400 AD

H: 3.8 cm - W : 2.8 cm - D: 2.1 cm
Weight: 7 g
Gold, technique of lost wax casting.

Bellpendant depicting the head of the god Yacatecuhtli. The mouth is half-opened. The big and round nose is upturned. The circular eyes are pierced. The lower and upper eyelids are marked by deep grooves. The cheekbones are prominent. The forehead is decorated with a tiara composed of a central pattern and a twisted wire. The ears are adorned with circular loops. The head is surmounted by a holding ring.

Thegod Yacatecuhli means "god of avant-garde" in Nahua. He was an avatar of Quetzalcoatl, tutelary god of Nahua of Puebla and Tlaxcala. Rites of Quetzalcoatl imposed on the noble candidates for initiation to go to Cholula to meet two great priests. After several days of prayer and penance, ears, nose and lips of initiates were drilled through the bones of eagles and jaguars.