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Aztec Deities A ztec Z T E C Deities E I T I E S Aztec Z T E C Deities E I T I Figurte 1 “Roland's Friend: 2002” E S Other Works ™ ramblin/rose publications My Father's Room The Four Season's of the Master Myth If Only…A collaboration with Bill Pearlman Mexican Vibrations, Vibraciones Méxicanas Mexican Secrets, Estrangement and Once Again…Alone; with poems by Bill Pearlman Twenty A Magical Number with Tonalphalli: The Count of Fate & Convergence: 2002 CD/DVD: Gods, Land & People of Mexico Con tu permiso: Dioes, Tierra y Gente de México CD/DVD: Work in Progress: The Four Seasons of the Master Myth Books can be downloaded free: www.salazargallery.com www.E-artbooks.com Aztec Z T E C Deities E I T I Figurte 1 “Roland's Friend: 2002” E S Roland Salazar Rose ™ PUBLISHED BY RAMBLIN/ROSE PUBLICATIONS Images Copyright Roland Salazar Rose 2000-2008 All content, identified in this book “Aztec Deities” published 2008, marked by this notice: “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 & 11” are “from Wikipedia®, the free encyclopedia and are considered “copyleft”; therefore the following copyright notice applies to each and every page of written text so identified by “1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10&11”. “Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".” Content on Wikipedia® is covered by disclaimers. ISBN 978-09818627-4-3 For all other content in the subject book: All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, in any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission of the publisher. www.salazargallery.com Impreso en México Printed in Mexico © 2008 To Britt Rose, neé Hallquist, mother of my three daughters, Jane, Joan, Catherine and son Alexander. To Helen Rivas Merrill, Antony Rivas, & Conrad Merrill in memory of my days with you in The Great Blue Heron in Maine and Casa Blanca in Mexico. Introduction to Aztec Deities In 2000, I began a series entitled themselves at Tenochitlán (Mexico Aztec Deities. I chose eleven Aztec City); the emperor Montezuma gods' names for the series. welcomed him. This foolish move Interestingly, there was a god for by Montezuma allowed Cortéz to almost every purpose and aspect of make his headquarters in the life in the Aztec culture. I chose capitol. Later, he was informed that some of their most important gods other Aztecs had plundered and goddesses; others were a purely Veracruz and killed the contingent arbitrary choice on my part. I did of men he left there. He seized this series because I wanted to relate Montezuma and forced his as a 'gringo' and as contemporary surrender of his warriors; he then visual artist, on the subject of these executed the emperor. fascinating and important Aztec deities. Cortés and men were astonished at the incredibly advanced city-state of Tenochtitlán, which had been Extremely bloody religious rituals built on a large lake with irrigation. and internecine warfare dominated With a population of over 200,000 the Aztec empire (1427-1521) and people, larger than any European helped to finally result in its demise. city at that time, Tenochtitlán's At its apex it stretched across most markets brimmed with produce. of central Mesoamerica. Gold, silver and precious stones were displayed in abundance. The infamously indomitable Cortés realized that the Spanish Spanish conquistador Hernando crown would reward him for Cortés conquered it with a very finding gold and that he would small army after his landing on the become personally wealthy. He east coast around Veracruz in April sought rebellious nearby native 1519. There, to prevent all thought tribes to join him in his warfare of retreat, he burned his own ships. against the Aztecs. With only about Leaving a small force on the coast, 1,000 troops, horses, crude Cortés led the rest of his men into weaponry, and typical armor, with the interior. A warlike tribe of great military acumen Cortés natives attacked his party. He forged conquered the vast Aztec land and forward, after the battle with the extended empire. Their civilization local natives, and on November 8, was devastated. 1519, Cortés and his army found What I have outlined here is the popular version - 7 - of the 'conquest' of the Aztecs. Professor Andrés win the most powerful to his side. Reséndez in his history “A Land So Strange” Cortés left 200 of his men at delves even deeper. Tenochtitlán and marched to In Rséndez's book he brings into Campollon [near Vera Cruz]. Cortés focus the roles played by Diego defeated Narávez, “shackled him in Velázquez and Pánfilo de Narváez. chains” and jailed him in Vera Cruz; Velázquez was “the richest resident he got his men to agree to join him in of Espanola, the island shared today his thirst for riches and power and to by Haiti and the Dominican fight the Aztecs. * With significant Republic.”* With his connections in help (thousands joined Cortés) from Spain he got the crown to authorize other tribes, who hated the Aztecs, him to occupy Cuba. Narávez joined Cortés went on to 'conquer' the him in this 'power play' and was Aztec empire. dispatched to the court to influence the crown in Velázquez interest in * See A Land So Strange by Andrés the New World. Several years Reseéndez; published by Basic elapsed; finally after the death of Books, copyright 2007 by Andrés King Ferdinand and the assumption Reséndez; chapter 1 “The Prize That of the crown by Charles of Ghent, he was able to get approval from the Was Snatched Away.” King, due mostly because of Velázquez discoveries of gold in the Yucatan in 1517-18. * Cortés agenda was not in sync with Velázquez and Narávez. He saw opportunity for himself and got an expedition together to seek the riches found in the Yucatan. Both parties sought intrigue and counter-intrigue seeking dominance one over the other. Narávez assembled (with Velázquez backing) troops and moved on Cortés claim on Mexico. He landed around Vera Cruz. Cortés saw Little Feast of the Dead © Roland Salazar Rose 2000 Narávez forces in Mexico as a threat as Montezuma was plying both In 2000 with eleven Aztec gods' and parties with gifts and attempting to goddesses' names on hand, I set out - 8 - to create eleven contemporary media. When I employed a brush, it images of them. The glyphs of the was not always used as in painting or gods that are shown in the codices, for lines, but rather used as broad or Aztec books, helped in my marks or for filling in the chapapote process of representation. But background color. In the 2000 series mostly the images just sprang up as I the work is oil pastels with chapapote drew them. The paper images, about in my medium Sal-Zar. In 2002 I 9 X 12 inches, (vertical) were later used chapapote, spray enamels and mounted to wood, done in mixed oil pastels. I know that there is media. All of these images are now in private collections in England, controversy concerning the use of Mexico and the U.S.A. spray paint; however I leave it to conservators to determine this. Two years later I revisited the idea of representing the gods and I created Why did I do the Aztec Deities another series of the same number Series when obviously I could never and names. This time I decided to do present a true appreciation of the more than just show a head image majesty of this time in history? I and would instead represent entire didn't research the mythology on the figures. I also decided on an God Tonatiuh, which translates as introductory piece for the eleven “He Who Makes the Day” and use gods and goddesses, as each year I this as a basis for the painting. I let do a piece that I title “Roland's my imagination take hold and this friend”; I painted a corresponding guided me to represent the gods. piece for this series of eleven, bringing the total to twelve. I used Clearly this work represents a the same names for the gods as in the series of 2000: He Who Makes the “gringo” contemporary artist's Day: Tonatiuh; Our Flayed Lord: Xipel understanding and view of a period Totec; Obsidian Butterfly: Itzpapalot; in history when gods & goddesses Two Rabbit: Ome Tochtli; Lord of the abounded and when a vast military Nose: Yacatecuhtli; Salt Woman: and civil society was destroyed for Huixtocihuatl; Smoking Mirror: 'conquest: for gold' and in the name Tezatlepoca; Little Feast of the Dead: of church and state. Miccailhuitontli; Defied Woman: Cihuateteo; Yellow Face: Xiuhtecuhtli- As for me, I did not seek out the Ixcozauhqui; Cloud Serpent: Mixcocatl. gods and goddess; they came to me! As to the techniques employed in these two bodies of work, they are San Miguel de Allende, México 2008 best described as drawings in mixed - 9 - He Who Makes the Lord of the Nose Day Tonatiuh Our Flayed Lord Obsidian Butterfly Two Rabbit Yacatecuhtli Xipe Totec Itzpapalotl Ome Tochtli Salt Woman Smoking Mirrw Little Feast of the Dead Yellow Face Huixtocihuatl ezcatliepoca Deified Woman Miccailhultontli Cihuateto Xiuhtecuhtli Ixcozauhqui Cloud Serpent Mixcoatl Perhaps the Aztec influence Puts a Mask On the Mexican psyche? What other reason for both The black and white presence In each encounter? An upward glance And a downward stare ¡ - 10 - “ He Who Makes the Day: Tonatiuh ” “Tonatiuh was also known as the fifth sun, because the Aztecs believed that he was the sun that took over when the fourth sun was expelled from the sky.
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