Rough Notes:
The tongue hanging out in Aztec art
ORIGINAL QUESTION received from - and thanks to - Omar Sanchez: In most Aztec artwork I noticed most (if not all) animals and gods have their tongues out. What did that mean to them? (Answered by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)
In fact, if you browse through an anthology of Mexica art such as Aztec Art by Esther Pasztory, which includes examples from stone sculptures, codex pages, mosaics, featherwork, ceramics, jewellery, monolithic monuments and much more, you find the number of images in which the tongue is sticking out of the mouth to be a very small minority. The exceptions are dramatic ones, however: the tongue (and obsidian blade) in the centre of the Sunstone, images of the face of Tlaltecuhtli (earth deity), Xipe Totec (‘The Flayed One’) in the Tovar Calendar...
Tlaltecuhtli was commonly depicted by the Aztecs with his/her tongue out as a sign of his/her thirst for human blood - the archetypal Mexica deity that could both nourish life and take it away - and of course many now believe that it is Tlaltecuhtli’s face that is shown in the centre of the Sunstone. What comes from the deity’s mouth, in the great stone monolith discovered only recently in central Mexico City (and now on display in the Templo Mayor Museum - photo above), is more than just a tongue - it is a steady flow of blood, ‘a powerful visual representation of Tlaltecuhtli’s devouring role, and a symbol of the divine link between human sacrifice and providing sustenance [food] to the Aztecs’ gods.’ Learn more from the link below...
Photo by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore
‘IN THE NEWS: latest excavations...’
Here's what others have said:
6 At 11.48pm on Sunday December 27 2015, EJM wrote:
Tlaltecuhtli represents a masculine aspect of the earth’s essence, so it is absurd to refer to “his/her thirst for human blood.” The earth nourishes us and we return to it in death (metaphorically devoured.) It’s time to get past the outdated misinformation regarding Aztec human sacrifice. Spewing blood from the mouth is life, vitality. The earth gives life... it does not eat humans and let blood drip out. Also, as @cosca said, the tecpatl or flint as a tongue represents words, the sharpness with which they can cut; the sparks/fire they can produce. It is all metaphor.
Mexicolore replies: Thanks for putting a welcome new perspective on this - much appreciated.
5 At 1.10pm on Sunday February 23 2014, bobo Brown wrote:
The Tlinket culture sometimes display a wolf with it’s tongue hanging out to the side in their sacred symbols. It stands for wealth. When you kill a wolf, it’s big tongue just hangs out it’s mouth when it’s dead. Then you sell the furs & get wealthy.
4 At 1.46pm on Wednesday September 4 2013, Grace Sesma wrote:
@Cosca Cuahtli: this is how the imagery was explained by elders Tata Kachora and Maestro Tlakaelel. @Mexicolore: thank you for helping helping us In Ixtli, In Yollotl
3 At 10.02am on Monday December 10 2012, cosca cuahtli wrote:
my understanding is that tlatecuhtli is actually a representation of man and in each of us there is a guide. on the sun stone it faces up looking towards the grand universe. the place where our creative energy will return one day. The tecpatl which is his flintstone tongue is symbolic for the fire that words carry... Hope this gives a better understanding of my culture and its oral tradition.
Mexicolore replies: Thanks for this very meaningful interpretation.
2 At 7.39pm on Saturday September 29 2012, Bob Cox wrote:
The Aztec calendar was on display at the Zocalo for many years before it was moved to the Anthrpological Museum. During the Mexican American wars , American soldiers occupyinf forces would take pot shots at it to amuse themslves, thus damaging it.
1 At 4.31pm on Monday July 9 2012, Katia H wrote:
That’s a good observation. Do all beings that thirst for human blood tend to be depicted with their tongues out? Thinking over Mexica art I’ve seen, dangerous animals like snakes, wolves, and jaguars have protruding tongues. You could say these animals thirst for human blood since they can harm humans.
Bes
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| Bes | |
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| Egyptian God of dwarves | |
Bes statue from Amanthus (Cyprus) in the Istanbul Archaeological Museums
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| Major cult center | New Kingdom |
| Symbol | Ostrich feather |
| Consort | Beset |
Bes (/bɛs/; also spelled as Bisu) and its feminine counterpart Beset are an Ancient Egyptian deity worshipped as a protector of households, and in particular, of mothers and children and childbirth. Bes later came to be regarded as the defender of everything good and the enemy of all that is bad. While past studies identified Bes as a Middle Kingdom import from Nubia, more recent research indicates that he was present in Egypt since the start of Old Kingdom. Mentions of Bes can be traced to pre-dynastic Nile Valley cultures; however his cult did not become widespread until the beginning of the New Kingdom. However, the introduction of Bes is also believed to be an imported Somali influence, especially in the Syrian area. [1]
Bes relief at the Dendera Temple, Egypt
God Bes as a Roman soldier. Sword in right hand and spear and shield in left hand. Limestone slab, in relief. Roman Period. From Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
Female Demon Beset of the Sudan National Museum
Bes statue from Egypt in the Musée du Louvre, Paris
Contents
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Iconography[edit]
Modern scholars such as James Romano claim that in its earliest inception Bes was a representation of a lion rearing up on its hind legs.[2]After the Third Intermediate Period, Bes is often seen as just the head or the face, often worn as amulets.
Worship[edit]
Images of the deity were kept in homes and he was depicted quite differently from the other gods. Normally Egyptian gods were shown in profile, but instead Bes appeared in portrait, ithyphallic, and sometimes in a soldier's tunic, so as to appear ready to launch an attack on any approaching evil. He scared away demons from houses, so his statue was put up as a protector.
Bes was a household protector, throughout ancient Egyptian history becoming responsible for such varied tasks as killing snakes, fighting off evil spirits, watching after children, and aiding (by fighting off evil spirits) women in labour (and thus present with Taweret at births).
Since he drove off evil, Bes also came to symbolize the good things in life – music, dance, and sexual pleasure. Later, in the Ptolemaic period of Egyptian history, chambers were constructed, painted with images of Bes and his wife Beset, thought by Egyptologists to have been for the purpose of curing fertility problems or general healing rituals.
Many instances of Bes masks and costumes from the New Kingdom and later have been uncovered. These show considerable wear, thought to be too great for occasional use at festivals, and are therefore thought to have been used by professional performers, or given out for rent.
In the New Kingdom, tattoos of Bes could be found on the thighs of dancers, musicians and servant girls.
Like many Egyptian gods, the worship of Bes or Beset was exported overseas, and he, in particular, proved popular with the Phoenicians and the ancient Cypriots meanwhile she got popular in Minoan Crete.[3] In the late 500s BC, images of Bes began to spread across the Persian Empire, which Egypt belonged to at the time. Images of Bes have been found at the Persian capital of Susa, and as far away as central Asia. Over time, the image of Bes became more Persian in style, as he was depicted wearing Persian clothes and headdress.
The Balearic island of Ibiza derives its name from this god, brought along with the first Phoenician settlers in 654 BC. These settlers, amazed at the lack of any sort of venomous creatures on the island, thought it to be the island of Bes (<איבשם> ʔybšm *ʔibošim). Later Romans called it Ebusus.
Mask depicting Bes, early 4th-1st century BC. The Walters Art Museum.
Popular culture[edit]
- Bes is an important character in the books of the saga The Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan.
- Bes appears, as part of the delegation of Egyptian gods, in The Sandman: Season of Mists, by Neil Gaiman.
- Bes is a friend and helper to the heroes in Pyramid Scheme by Eric Flint and Dave Freer
- Bes appears in the video game Realm of the Mad God as a boss of an Egyptian themed dungeon, alongside Nut and Geb.
See also[edit]
Bibliography[edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bes. |
- The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, Richard H. Wilkinson. ISBN 0-500-05120-8
- The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, Ian Shaw. ISBN 0192804588
References[edit]
- Jump up^ Mackenzie, Donald A. (1907). Egyptian myth and legend. The Gresham Publishing; London. p. 312.
The grotesque god Bes also came into promuicnce during the Eighteenth Dynasty; It is possible that he was introduced as early as the Twelfth. Although his worship spread into Syria he appears to have been of African origin and may have been imported from Somali land.
- Jump up^ The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, Wilkinson pub. Thames & Hudson, pg.104 ISBN 0-500-05120-8
- Jump up^ Weingarten, Judith, "The Arrival of Bes[et] on Middle-Minoan Crete", in There and Back Again – the Crossroads II. Proceedings of an International Conference Held in Prague (edited by Jana Mynárová, Pavel Onderka, and Peter Pavúk). September 15–18, 2014,
Further reading[edit]
- Dasen, Veronique (2013). Dwarfs in Ancient Egypt and Greece. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-199-68086-8