ASPECT AND INSIGNIA
Codex Borgia.—The god is indicated by a bundle having a peculiar object with two black, longitudinal stripes for a head. At the eye-level a bandage is worn, and the whole is crowned with a hair wig and bound with a double-jewelled fillet. The crown of the “head” is also indicated by two longitudinal stripes which terminate in an involuted peak, curving backwards. Two malinalli (grass) stripes are worn as a breast-ornament, and the lower extremities are draped with a flowing cloth.
General.—The head is more elaborately shown in the Mexican MSS. proper. Through the peak is thrust a carefully inserted arrow and its anterior edge is evenly notched. In Codex Telleriano-Remensis and Codex Borbonicus the face of this personage, who is called by the interpreters “the curved [[338]]sharp stone,” Itztlacoliuhqui, is decorated with the gold crescent nasal ornament of Tlazolteotl and the octli-gods. That this figure is the god of avenging justice is indicated by its bandaged eyes, which recall the appearance of Tezcatlipocâ-Ixquimilli, or Tezcatlipocâ as god of the thirteenth day-count. The stone and club were used for punitive purposes, so the figure symbolic of “justice” was thus represented as a hard stone.
Codex Fejérváry-Mayer.—Itztlacoliuhqui is shown here as of a blue colour, and his face is painted with blue and white cross-bands instead of yellow and black, like Tezcatlipocâ. He wears Tezcatlipocâ’s breast-ornament, while in his hair is the forked adornment of heron-feathers.
MYTHS
The interpreter of the Codex Vaticanus A says:
“Ytzlacoliuhqui signifies the lord of sin or of blindness, and for this reason they paint him with his eyes bandaged. They say that he committed sin in a place of the highest enjoyment and delight, and that he remained naked; on which account his first sign is a lizard, which is an animal of the ground naked and miserable. He presided over these thirteen signs, which were all unlucky. They said likewise that if false evidence should be adduced on any one of these signs it would be impossible to make the truth manifest. They put to death those who were taken in adultery before his image if the parties were married; as this not being the case, it was lawful for them to keep as many women or concubines as they pleased. Ytzalcoliuhqui is a star in heaven which as they pretend proceeds in a reverse course; they considered it a most portentous sign, both as concerned with nativities and war. This star is situated at the south.”
The interpreter of the Codex Telleriano-Remensis says:
“Ytzlacoliuhqui, the lord of sin. Ytzlacoliuhqui was the lord of these thirteen days. They say he was the god of frost. They put to death before his image those who were convicted of adultery during these thirteen days; this was the punishment of married persons both men and women, [[339]]for, provided the parties were unmarried, the men were at liberty to keep as many concubines as they pleased.
“Ytzlacoliuhqui was the lord of sin or of blindness, who committed sin in paradise; they therefore represented him with his eyes bandaged, and his day was accordingly the lizard and, like the lizard, he is naked. He is a star in heaven which … proceeds in a backward course with its eyes bandaged. They considered it a great prognostic.