Chicomecoatl, the goddess of corn

Chicomecoatl is represented in this sculpture carved in stone, and it is possible to identify her as the image of the goddess of sustenance because, through the comparative study of the representations of some of the deities linked to their cult, many of the characteristics that define her are visible, mainly in the clothing. For example, the face of the goddess is framed by an elaborate rectangular headdress, called amacalli in the Nahuatl language, a term meaning paper house, which is divided into several levels and gives the piece a frontal and immobile character.

At the top, the elaborate headdress of the goddess, which was probably made of paper attached to a wooden frame, has a series of frustoconical shapes in row and at each end has a large rosette carved in the rock, representing a form made of folded paper, and from each one hangs a pair of elongated shapes representing long strips of paper. As in the next stage, the great geometric headdress has a series of circular shapes that could well represent the green stones that are commonly called chalchihuites, and which refer to the sacredness of the goddess.

Although our sculpture no longer has traces of color, thanks to the representations of the goddess found in the codices; for example, in the Borbonicus Codex, it is likely that both the headdress of the goddess and the attire that she wore were painted Red, the color that characterizes her. We can therefore suggest that in the original conception of our piece, both her skirt and her shirt as well as her skin were covered with a red coat.

Color is not the only element omitted from the configuration of our sculpture, the two pairs of ears of corn usually held by the goddess in each of her hands to symbolize the domain that she controls are also absent.

It should be considered that the goddess Chicomecoatl, whose name in Nahuatl means Seven Serpent, was seen as the goddess of sustenance among the Nahuatl peoples of the Post-Classic era, that is, as the goddess of maize, and she was a very old goddess. She was considered the incarnation of the mature plant, and her domain was linked to the fertility necessary for the cultivation of maize, a grain that with squash and peppers formed the nutritional baseline of the Mesoamerican peoples. The ground seed was used to make the dough from which tamales and tortillas were made.

On the eve of the Conquest, ceremonies were dedicated to this goddess throughout the period of twenty days called huey tozoztli, which means great vigil. Throughout these, the images of the goddess that were located in the temples were worshiped, as well as those of Cinteotl, the young corn god. Tules or branches of other plants were placed in the doors of the houses and the common people and the nobility offered flowers in the temples. In these ceremonies the ears of corn of the previous crop were also consecrated. Maidens dressed in red were taken to the temple of the goddess tied in groups of seven thereby securing future harvests.