The myth of Quetzalcoatl
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
The myth of Quetzalcoatl
Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999
- Other Title
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El mito de Quetzalcóatl
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Note
Translation of: El mito de Quetzalcóatl. 2nd ed. c1995
Includes bibliographical references (p. 265-280) and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
Warrior, rain-god, and spirit of the maize, the most familiar of all the Meso-American gods, Quetzalcoatl is better known for his attributes than for his history. How he became the shared hero of warring peoples - the Olmecs, Toltecs, Mayans, the Zapotecs and others - and how he became known to later peoples are complex stories. His very name links the earth ("coatl", or serpent) with the sky ("quetzalli", or precious green feathers). In this comprehensive study, Enrique Florescano traces the spread of the worship of the Plumed Serpent and the multiplicity of interpretations that surrounds him. Florescano compares the Palenque inscriptions (circa 690 AD), the Vienna Codex (pre-Hispanic Conquest), the "Historia de los Mexicanos" (1531), the "Popul Vuh" (circa 1554-1558) and numerous other texts to trace the changes and expansion of the myth. He also consults (and reproduces) archaeological evidence from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua, demonstrating how the myth of Quetzalcoatl extends throughout Meso-America.
Chapter topics include the diverse manifestations of divinity in Quetzalcoatl; the god as civilizing hero; interpretations of creation stories and other myths; and a comparative study of other gods and goddesses, including Dumuzi, Tammuz, Osiris, Adonis and Persephone.
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