Animal Figures in the Maya Codices |
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Common terms and phrases
Agriocharis ocellata Altar appears Armadillo associated Aves beak Beltran's black vulture Cauac centipede Central America Chichen Itza connection conventionalized Copan Cortesianus crest crocodile dorsal drawings Dresden 29b Dresden 7c Dresden Codex Ethnology feathers female figure fish Förstemann frequently frog glyph Glyphs for Maya glyphs representing gods head head-dress heron honey horned owl identified iguana jaguar king vulture knob Landa lizard Lower Chamber Maudslay macaw Mammalia Maudslay Maya codices Maya month mayensis Moan bird monkey Myriapoda Nahua Nahua day sign noted Nuttall Codex occur Ocellated Turkey offering Otus choliba Palenque parrot Peabody Museum peccary pictured possibly representing probably puma quetzal rain repre representations Reptilia Schellhas 1904 screech owl seems seen Seler serpent shell shown in Pl species Stela Stempell Stone carving tail Temple Tigers tonalamatl Tozzer Tro-Cortesianus Tro-Cortesianus 12b Tro-Cortesianus 26c turtle usually Various animals Vaticanus 3773 Yucatan Yucatan Deer Yucatan Horned yucatanensis
Popular passages
Page 319 - ... the old frescoes archaeologists are deeply indebted to Miss Adela C. Breton, who made several visits to Yucatan for the purpose of making facsimiles of the originals. In addition to her gifts mentioned in former reports, Miss Breton has given to the Museum two of her colored drawings of portions of the bas-relief of the lower chamber of the Temple of the Tigers. She has also generously colored several plates in our copy of Maudslay's work on the ruins of Chichen Itza, from the copies she made...
Page 300 - ... y ciertas iguanas y pan, y una mitra y un manojo de flores, y una piedra preciosa de las suyas.
Page 281 - It is well known that this bee was kept by the ancient Mexicans, and what appear to be improvised hives are shown in PI. 2, figs. 7, 10, where the combs are noted depending from the ceiling or walls. These combs are seen to be composed of cells roughly four-sided for the most part, though in fig. 11 several hexagonal cells are present in the mass of comb held by the black god, M.
Page 340 - Oceolotl, as already noted, means jaguar, and the jaguar glyph is found among the day signs (PI. 34, fig. 3). Seler (1904, p. 379) associates the jaguar in the Vaticanus and the Bologna with Tezcatlipoca. He notes that the second age of the world, in which the giants lived and in which Tezcatlipoca shone as the sun, is called the "jaguar sun.
Page 321 - OF MONTH MUAN SHOWING MOAN-BIRD CHARACTERISTICS. that the month Muan and, consequently, the sign as well, refer to the Pleiades. In connection with the screech owl referring to death, it is interesting to note that among the Nahuas the owl is considered of unlucky augury and is usually found in the " House of Death " and " of Drought ", as contrasted with the turkey, considered as a bird of good fortune, and found in the
Page 341 - Ay perros naturales dela tierra que no tienen pelo ninguno, y no ladran, que tienen los dientes ralos e agudos, las orejas...
Page 281 - Pi. 2, fig. 1, the bee is represented without mouthparts but antennae only. This may indicate a drone or a queen bee that takes no active part in the work of gathering honey or making comb. Fig. 2 is perhaps the least reduced of any of the figures and shows the worker bee with antennae and mouthparts. The so-called "cloud balls" of the day sign Cauac (PI. 2, fig. 8) may represent the honey comb. Cauac is usually supposed to have some connection with lightening and thunder although Valentini agrees...
Page 331 - Acabado el mitote, ofrecían la cabeza y pies al ídolo y chamuscábanla, y después de chamuscada, la llevaban á casa del Papa y se la comía, y el venado y su sangre comían los demás sacerdotes delante del ídolo; á los pescados les sacaban las tripas y los quemaban ante el dicho ídolo< Lo propio era con los demás animales.
Page 331 - ... hacían su baile. Tomaban el Papa y sabio la cabeza del venado por las orejas, y los cuatro sacerdotes los cuatro pies, y el mayordomo llevaba un brasero, do se quemaba el corazon conulí y copa, é incensaban al ídolo que tenían puesto y señalado para la caza y pesca.
Page 290 - This is seen in the border at the bottom of the Lower Chamber •of the Temple of the Tigers at Chichen Itza (PI.