Coatlicue

By Ana Mastretta Yanes.

My story is about Coatlicue.

Coatlicue is a snake woman. There is something very complex about her visual representation. It is based on a sculpture that is around four metres high. It is huge, enormous. At first, it may seem like she has two eyes, like all of us, and one tongue. But if you look closely, her eyes are actually formed by two snakes. One snake forms one side, another snake forms the other, and they meet to create her face. So it is two snakes, but together they form one woman. It is a very striking image. You can imagine it — her head is made of snakes. She also has more snakes: her skirt is made out of snakes. Around her neck, she wears a necklace made of human hands, hearts, and skulls. An important detail is her chest. Her breasts are hanging, which shows that she has given birth and that she is a mother. This is significant because she is the mother of the hummingbird, the mother of the gods, and the mother of the god of war, whose name is Huitzilopochtli. He is also associated with the sun. This myth speaks about how the earth gives birth to the sun.

The sculpture itself has its own history. In the 16th century, the Spanish were not able to destroy it because of its size, so they buried it underground. About 200 years later, in the 18th century, during architectural works in Mexico City, it was discovered again. People were amazed and began to display it. However, people in Mexico started to believe in her again as a goddess and began performing religious ceremonies. Those in power did not approve of this, so they buried the sculpture again. Around another 200 years later, when Mexico was already an independent country, it was discovered once more. Now it is kept in a museum. It remains a very powerful sculpture, a powerful symbol, and a powerful goddess. There is also a question of whether people still believe in her. This connects to another figure — the Virgin of Guadalupe, a Catholic symbol that is one of the most important religious figures in Mexico and in many other parts of the world.