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The quetzal plays a central role in Mesoamerican mythology and is associated with the Aztec deity Quetzalcoatl. The word quetzal was originally used for just the resplendent quetzal , the long-tailed quetzal of Guatemala , (more specifically the area of Northern Guatemala known as the Petén) which is the national bird and the name of the ...
Since the killing of quetzals was forbidden under Maya and Aztec law, the bird was merely seized, its prolonged tail feathers deplumed, and set loose. [21] In ancient Mayan culture, quetzal feathers were considered so precious that they were used as a medium of exchange, [21] leading to the name of the Guatemalan currency, the quetzal. [36]
Classic Maya serpent iconography seems related to the belief in a sky-, Venus-, creator-, war- and fertility-related serpent deity. In an example from Yaxchilan, the Vision Serpent has the human face of the young maize-god, further suggesting a connection to fertility and vegetational renewal; the Maya Young Maize god was also connected to Venus.
The male resplendent quetzal boasts iridescent blue-green tail feathers measuring up to 1 metre (3.3 ft) long that were prized by the Maya elite. [12] The blue-green feathers symbolized vegetation and the sky, both symbols of life for the ancient Maya, while the bright red feathers of the bird's chest symbolized fire. [12]
With the help of his allies, Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado defeated and killed the Maya ruler Tecún Umán here [citation needed]. When Alvarado conquered the city for Spain in the 1520s, he called it by the Nahuatl name used by his Central Mexican Indian allies, "Quetzaltenango", generally considered to mean "the place of the quetzal bird."
The Olmec culture predates the Maya and the Aztec. This cultural enclave extended from the Gulf of Mexico to Nicaragua. Most surviving representations in Olmec art, such as Monument 19 at La Venta , and a painting in the Juxtlahuaca cave (see below), show the Feathered Serpent as a crested rattlesnake , sometimes with feathers covering the body ...
The most important of feathers in central Mexico were the long green feathers of the resplendent quetzal which were reserved for deities and the emperor. [15] One reason for their rarity was that quetzals could not be domesticated as they died in captivity. Instead wild birds were caught, plucked and released. [19] Other tropical birds were ...
His name is translated as "Radiant First Quetzal Macaw" or "Sun-Eyed Green Macaw" or even "Sun In The Mouth of the Quetzal Bird". The Chʼortiʼ belong to the Meridional Mayans, and are closely related to the Mayans in Yucatán, Belize and Northern Guatemala. They are also somewhat related to the Choles, Mayans who currently live in Chiapas.