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Aztec General and his dog

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The Ticocyahuacatl, meaning "Keeper of the Bowl of Fatigue" (Berdan & Anawalt, 1992), was a high ranking military and social title of Mexico-Tenochtitlan (capital city of the Triple Alliance or the Aztec Empire). Described as a general or high ranking military captain of some sort, he is also listed as one of several judges for potential succesors to the throne, one of the four "principales" (nobles) that aided a new ruler, and from whom a Tlatoani (emperor) could be chosen.He appears in the Codex Mendoza in both civil and military array, wearing a cloak with the glyph "Ometochtecomayo" (meaning two-rabbit pulque vessel; Pulque is a fermented alcoholic beverage, considering what his named translates into and that he also is associated with a naming glyph representing a bowl of pulque, it's clear the title carries a pulque motif) in the former, and a yellow feathered war suit in the latter, with a banner pertaining to an elite military order named the Cuauchique (shorn ones).In the painting he is represented as accurately as I could, with both pieces of clothing, as well as a spear, a shield and the famous obsidian bladed sword (as represented by the specimen that was in the Museum of Madrid).


To his right is the Xoloitzcuintle, a breed of dog native to México and Mesoamerica and popularly represented in the pixar movie Coco, it carried great social and religious significance in mesoamerica. Xoloitzcuintles are commonly depicted as hairless, largely because it's distinctive appearance has become somewhat of a defining factor among dog breed clubs and associations; They are coated as well however, generally with short fur and a wide variety of colours, though longer, curlier fur is also represented. It's likely that in prehispanic times the furred variety were more common, the furless kind being prized because of their *relative* rarity, due to mendelian laws of inheritance.
To his left are examples of tributary offerings, such as cacao, chile, jade, gold, cotton clothing and ceramic.
The interior of the building is somewhat more speculative, both archaeological evidence and historical documents certify an almost obsessive love for stucco among mesoamericans as far back as the olmecs, where even the lower classes strived for coating at least parts of their houses in the material. When polished correctly it gives a beautiful marmol like shimmer of which according to the spaniards,  mesoamericans did masterfully, surviving paintings such as the murals of teotihuacan attest to this as well. Cortez and Del Castillo among other first hand accounts described the palaces of Tenochtitlan as decorated heavily, with paintings of all kinds, such as gods, animals, scenes or abstact designs, as well as animal fur, jade and gold.

To be honest though I didn't really plan out this painting (a terrible mistake I don't intend on repeating), and so I basically copied the design of an older iteration of the Great Temple that can be seem today in the archaeological site, as well as a few dieties from the Codex Borbonicus pretty much verbatim. I regret not putting a bigger effort in placing my own designs, as it would have been just as accurate and more creative. I learned a lot of techniques in the process of creating this painting, It'll be fun to apply what I've learned in the future. 

Be sure to watch me and check out my tumblr and facebook as well, for more of my work! I am open to commisions, feel free to contact if your interested!
Image size
3680x5250px 32.38 MB
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