Images of Death in Mexican Prints/ La Muerte en el Impreso Mexicano

A prime example is the Mexicas, who were the dominant group upon the arrival of the Spanish. Their mythology included the bony skeletal figures of Mictlantecuhtli and Mictecarihuatl, god and goddess of the dead, who governed Mictlan, the realm of the dead, a place having little in common, however, w [...]
Visa längre beskrivning

A prime example is the Mexicas, who were the dominant group upon the arrival of the Spanish. Their mythology included the bony skeletal figures of Mictlantecuhtli and Mictecarihuatl, god and goddess of the dead, who governed Mictlan, the realm of the dead, a place having little in common, however, with the underworlds of Western religions. The sixth day of the Mexica calendar was Miquiztli, represented by a fleshless skull. The ninth month was Miccailhiltontli, the festival of those who had died in infancy, followed by Hueymiccailhuitlo, the great festival of the dead. Both of these months were associated with skull figures. The Mexicas placed the heads of their sacrificial victims on a tzompantli, or altar of skulls. For the Mexicas, the process of dying was a constant rebirth: human sacrifice and war were indispensable to the equilibrium of the universe. Their taste for skeleton figures can be seen in codices, sculptures, paintings, and pottery.