1. HUITZILOPOCHTLI (Lecture 36)

2. Huitzilopochtli • blue feathers • hummingbird headress
• xiuhcoatl (fire serpent) stick
• mirror
• [serpent foot]

3. Migration
• Migration as “external motivation”: fated, destined, divinely supported. • Migration charts genealogical, physical, topographical ancestry. • Migration establishes itinerary of significant places, sacralizing space. • Migration establishes political history of relations, legitimizing wars and alliances. • Route of migration provides map for ritual reenactment.

4. Aztec Migration
• Aztecs leave Aztlan and wander 300 years, led by bodiless Huitzilopochtli • group splits into two tribes • on Mount Coatepec, Coatlicue (“Snake Skirt Woman”) impregnated by feather • Huitzilopochtli born and attacked by 400 step-brothers and Coyolxauqui (“She Whose Face is Adorned with Bells”) • death of Coyolxauhqui ~ defeat of moon by sun • sculptured slab of dismembered Coyolxauqui at Templo Mayor • Huitzilopochtli kills Copan, leader of other migration group • heart of Copan becomes island in Lake Texcoco • Aztecs enslaved by neighboring tribes • Huitzilopochtli sacrifices daughter of neighboring king • Aztecs defeat masters, found Tenochtitlan (1345) where eagle perches in cactus