Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and

Mythology

Kerry Hull
Rob Fergus

Introduction

Among the apex predators of the air, eagles have always held special
significance for both ancient and modem Mesoamerican ·societies. Eagles
in general are common to oral lore, usually in a role exploiting their two
chief characteristics--their strength and agility. In this study, we broadly
examine the impact of eagle imagery and ideology on Mesoamerican
societies. As we will show, eagles are closely associated with warfare,
sacrifice, and nobility. In addition, we look at the mythology of the eagle in
relationship to sorcery-a connection stretching back into the Late Classic
Period. Finally, largely based on our fieldwork with various Maya groups,
we describe the widely diffused oral tradition of enormous eagles that steal
away humans and offer a reinterpretation of its origin.

Eagles Today in Mesoamerica

Mesoamerica is home to 44 species of kites, falcons, or hawks, at

least 10 of which are large enough to be occasionally considered eagles by
ancient and modem locals: Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja), Golden Eagle
-83-

L
 Eagles in Mesomnerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Dll~v'1~- JI! 15~ 2009'f-5 Jl
(Aquila chrysaetos), Great Black Hawk (Buteoga/lus urubitinga), Solitmy
view, Harpy Eagles were the eagles most depicted in the art of th~ Ancient
Eagle (Harpyhaliaetus so/itarius), Crested Eagle (Morphnus guianensis),
Maya such as in the variants for the "k'atun" (20-year penod) and
Black-and-white Hawk-Eagle (Spizastur melano/eucus), Black
"baktwi" (400-year period) hieroglyphs. Additionally, the Harpy Eagle
Hawk-Eagle (Spizaetus tyrannus), Ornate Hawk-Eagle (Spizaetus ornatus),
"plays a major role in Formative Ohnec iconography," according to Miller
Osprey (Pandio haliaetus), and Crested Caracara (Caracara plancus).
and Taube (1993:82).
Identifying specific species of eagles in the iconography of ancient
Unlike the forest-dwelling Harpy Eagle, the Golden Eagle is a bird
Mesomnerica can be challenging. Miller and Taube (1993:82) are most
of open grasslands, shrublands, and savannahs. Its current range is mostly
likely correct in saying that for ancient Mesoamerica the two most
north of Mesoamerica, with birds usually found only as far south as
important eagles were tl1e Golden Eagle and the Harpy Eagle.
Durango and San Luis Potosi, and only rarely as far south as Oaxaca
Harpy Eagles, standing over three feet tall and with a greater than
(Howell and Webb 1995). Only slightly smaller tlian the Harpy Ea~le,
six foot wingspan, are arguably the most powerful of all the eagle species
Golden Eagles hunt mostly medium sized terrestrial mammals, mcludmg
(Nations 2006:66). Harpy Eagles are deep forest species that prey mostly
rabbits and ground squirrels, though they occasionally kill larger prey,
on arboreal monkeys, coatis, and sloths. Widespread but rare throughout
including young deer, domestic livestock, or large birds. Probably the most
tropical lowlands in Central and South America, Harpy Eagles were
culturally significant bird within native cultures across North America, this
formerly found from at least Veracruz, across northern Chiapas, the Peten,
is presumably the original eagle of the Mexica and other people of
soutl1ern Belize, and the Caribbean coast of Honduras. Only a few pairs
northern Mesoamerica.
are still present in the largest and most isolated forest tracks within this
Crested Eagles appear as slightly smaller versions of the similar
range. Sightings of Harpy Eagles and other large birds of prey are currently
Harpy Eagles, likewise living in densely forested areas and only slig~tly
very rare in most parts of the Maya area. For exmnple, in the
less rare than their larger cousins. Solitary Eagles are about the same size,
Mam-speaking areas of the Guatemalan highlands, eagles (t'iw) m·e only
though mostly black plumaged. They are rare and little-studied residents of
rarely encountered. In fact, one Mam dictionary entry under "Aguila"
dense upland forests from Mexico to Argentina. The Great Black Hawk
contains the following lament: Ojtxa itdaq t'iw qxol tzalu', which means,
and Black Hawk-Eagle are very similar, though slightly smaller yet and
"Before there used to be.eagles among us" (Perez Hernandez 2003:136).
more common and widespread. As they are currently the largest raptors
Furthermore, Ch'orti' elders in soutliern Guatemala today report they saw
across most of their range, they are sometimes referred to as eagles within
a few eagles when they were children, but none in recent memory. For the
modern Mesomnerican cultures. For instance, Hawk Eagles are the largest
Ch'orti', the Harpy Eagle lives on only in oral traditions, as we discuss
raptors in Cmnpeche and Quintana Roo, and Great Black Hawks are the
more below. Sightings of Harpy Eagles in Belize are equally as uncommon
most likely "eagles" to be found in most ofYucatan.
today (Hartshorn et al. 1984: 107). While Lutz and Lutz go as far as to say
Ospreys are Crested Caracaras are usually considered separate
that Hmpy Eagles are now extinct in the wild in Belize (2005:30), there
from eagles within traditional Mesoamerican cultures, though some also
have been recent reports of Harpy Eagles breeding in southern Belize, a
refer to them as eagles. While the Mexican flag appears to show a Golden
fact also confinned to us in 2008 by a Q'eqchi' consultant. It is likely,
Eagle, these birds are not currently found in central and southern Mexico;
however, that they were more common is ancient times. Indeed, in our
therefore, there is a line of thought that the Caracara is actually the
-84-
-85-

j
 Eagles in Mesoumerican Tlmught and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
"Mexican Eagle," and that it was the bird that landed on the cactus with a
snake in its mouth to show the ancient Mexica where to build their city at
Tenochtitlan (see discussion below).
General Overview of Eagle Mythology and Ideology in Mesoamerica
The importance of the eagle in ancient Mesoamerica is evidenced by the
fact that it appears as one of the eleven day-names in the 260-day almanacs
shared in all Mesoamerican calendars (Rice 2007:33, 67). The status
associated with eagles in ancient Mesoamerican religion, politics, and
mythology extends back into Olmec times, where the Harpy Eagle figures
prominently in their sculptural art (Miller and Taube 1993:82). The
characteristically split crests on many birds in Olmec iconography, as
pointed out by Philip Drucker, are highly suggestive of those of Harpy
Eagles (in Taube 2004a:110; cf. Reilly 1990:154) (Figure 1).
Eagles are closely linked to warfare throughout Mesoamerica due
to their physical strength and hunting abilities (a topic discussed in detail
below) (cf. Kubler 1993:147). However, mythical powers are also
associated with eagles. In one Tzotzil tradition, great eagles or hawks are
said to relate to destructive powers and eclipses (Guiteras Holmes
1961:334). Following R.H. Barlow, Girard (Girard 1949:1405) also notes
that in some parts of Mexico the eagle was an object of offerings in what
he called "el cu/to de! aguila (the eagle cult)." This was likely the case
since some eagles were thought to possess supernatural powers and
abilities, a fact reflected in the Mixtec the word for eagle, yaha, appearing
in the expression yaha yahui, which, according to Alvarado's dictionary,
means a "wizard who flew through the air" (Smith 1973:63; cf. Jansen
1992:21-22). The sorcerer-like nature of eagles is also evident in the
260-day almanac, in which the Aztec day-name cuiiuhtli, "eagle,"
corresponds to the Maya day tz 'ikin ("bird") in the highland Maya calendar
and to men in the Yukatekan calendar. As Stross points out, men in Yukatek
can mean "seer" (Stross, n.d.:7; but see Thompson 1960:347). In addition,
-86-
!lli!llv<Y~- ll!Il'IO 2009'Flfl
it can also refer to a "curandero o yebatero (traditional healer or herbalist)"
(Barrera Vasquez 1980:520). Similarly, among the Tz'utujil Maya of
Santiago, Atitllm, we also found that Black Hawk-Eagle (xiik in Tz'utujil)
is widely known as a "sa,Yorin" or "sorcerer" since it is said to be able to
tell future events (Hull and Fergus, n.d.a). According to Tezozomoc
(n.d.:23, in Nuttal 1901:60), the cons01t of the Aztec god of war,
Huitzilopochtli, was "a woman who was called his sister and was carried
by four men. She was a powerful sorceress, possessed the power of
assuming the shape of an eagle, had made herself greatly feared and
caused herself to be adored as a goddess." Sorce1y and prognostication,
while certainly not unique to eagles among the birds of Mesoamerica, are
nevertheless key associations of eagles pointing to their supernatural
abilities.
At other times, eagles are related to elderly deities and maize.
Among the Huichol the eagle, which is closely linked to the god
Grandfather Fire, is also thought to be the protector of young maize plants
(King 1994:74). The Huastec Grandmother goddess Aach Eagle is also said
to be the grandmother ofThipaak, the Huastec Maize God (Alcorn 1984:62,
392).
Linguistic Discussion of Eagles
Tracing the precise linguistic terms for individual birds and species is quite
problematical in Mesoamerican studies for a number of reasons. First,
many of the data sources are quite old, so 01thography varies among
authors. Also, the terms in many dictionaries for flora and fauna were
sometimes not checked with serious scrutiny. Instead, researchers often
rely on imperfect visual identifications (since many linguists are not
trained in ornithological studies). In other cases, too much credence is
sometimes given to the native consultant's ability to provide the correct
Spanish name for each bird-knowledge that is much less common than
one might think among bilingual speakers. Furthermore, the bird
-87-
 Eagles in Mesomnerican Thought and Mythology {Keiry Hull & Rob Fergus)
classification systems of indigenous groups in Mesoarnerica are
considerably different from Western ones, with multiple birds and different
species sometimes sharing the satne name (see discussion below). Some
more recent research, however, has provided excellent, reliable data frotn
the ethnographer's point of view, but that still does not resolve the broad
indigenous classification systems often encountered in Mesoamerica. Thus,
terms given for "eagle" might actually apply to a number of different bird
types and species, Therefore, some of the data presented below may not be
as specific as one would hope, and sometimes represents a more general
1
classification.
In Nahuatl, cuiiuhtli is the common term for "eagle." In the
Zapotec of Yatzachi, the term is bsiadao' for "aguila reaf' ("golden
eagle") (Lang and Cruz 2000:259) or bsihah for "aguila" ("eagle") in San
Lucas Quiavinf (Muma and Lopez 1999:521).
In the modem Mayan languages, there are several common forms
that are widely distributed among the different branches. The
Proto-Ch'olan term t'iw is found today in Ch'orti', Ch'olti', and Chantal
(cf. Kaufman and Norman 1984:133). Ch'ol has two forms, tow (the same
word for "hawk") (Schumann 1973:46) and xiye' (Josserand and Hopkins
2001), which is often expanded to co/em bii xiye' ("big hawk" or "big
eagle") (Aulie and Aulie 1978:150). From the Proto-Mayan *t'iiw or
*t'ihw most of the Highland Mayan languages derive their forms, though
only some dialects Marn preserve the long vowel (Kaufman 2003:606).
The Lowland Mayan language Mopan, however, retains the long vowel as
1
The linguistic data of Hull and Fergus used in this study represents an effort to
accurately identify each bird through multiple sources. Both visual and audio data
were used with native consultants through weeks of hiking through forests with
consultants to see birds in their native habitats and identify them through sight or
sound. Also, visual reviews of bird books were also carried out with the same
consultants to confirm sightings and to make up for birds not found in the field.
Finally, most bird identifications were rechecked by also playing pre-recorded
calls for consultants. Incidentally, we found through research among the Ch 1orti ',
the Mopan, the Q'eqchi', and the Tz'utujil that consultants were even better at
identifying birds by calls than by sight.
-88-
;
Jllli~H,,O'~- !ll 15 ~ 2009 'P 5 Jl
t 'iiw for Harpy Eagle (Hull and Fergus, n.d.a). There are no Tzeltalan
cognates (Kaufman and Norman 1984: 133).
The 1nost common term for "eagle,, or "hawk" diffused throughout
Mayan languages is xik, from the Proto-Mayan *xi(h}k (Kaufman
2003:607). Even though xik is likely the original Mayan term for "eagle"
(cf. Boot n.d: 17), it is currently applied more often to hawks than eagles
(cf. Kaufman 2003 :607). This could be due in part to the fact that many
eagles, especially the Harpy Eagle, are not commonly found in many
Maya areas today. There is in fact a fair amount of overlap in the names of
raptors in Mayan languages.
It should come as no surprise that two of the most powerful and
efficient hunting species might share the same name at times. In our
research in the Tz'utujil-speaking area of Santiago, Atitlan, for instance,
based on sightings and listening to their cries, our consultants identified
xiik as either a Black Hawk-Eagle, a Solitary Hawk, or a Crested Caracara.
Also, in Q'eqchi', while xuk:ub k'uch (lit. "horn-hawk") is a term for a
Collared Forest-Falcon (Hull and Fergus, n.d.a), other sources give ·it as
"harpy eagle" (Gilardi 1997). Furthermore, in Yukatek, the term (ah) i' is
given as "aguila pescadora" (lit. "eagle-fisher") (Barrera Vasquez
1980:261) and other tlmes as "hawk" (Bricker et al. 1998:9; Bastarrachea
1992:37). Similar patterns of shared terminology are found with the
previously mentioned t'iw, which is given as "hawk," "eagle," or both in
many linguistics sources (cf. Kaufman 2003:606). Likewise, the root ch'uy
in Yukatek, which means 'to lift something in the air holding it suspended'
(Barrera Vasquez 1980:145) is the base for the term ch'uyum t'ul (lit.
"suspended-rabbit") (see Figure 2), "agui/a bastarda" (bastard/hybrid
eagle)2 or "aves de rapiiia" (birds of prey) (Bolles 1997-), which can refer
to either hawks or eagles. Anderson and Tzuc (2005:110) also report that
ch 'uy is a general term in Yukatek that can apply to hawks, eagles, and
2
The term bastardo in Spanish ("bastard" or "hybrid") may also signal that they
did not know if it was a "real" eagle, i.e., perhaps being a Caracara or a Great
Black Hawk.
-89-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought aud Mythology (Keny Hull & Rob Fergus)
falcons. Also, in Achi, tiguila (eagle) is xulb'aq, while gaviltin (hawk) is
xiik (Uchaolaj Ch'ateem: Vocabulario achf 2000:105, 135), again
showing the shared terminology based on perceived physical and
characteristic similarities. 3
Kot, koot and koht are other cognate terms for ''eagle" in a nrnnber
of Mayan languages. However, it is not native to Mayan but a rare
loanword from Nahuatl (cuauh-tli) (Justeson et al. 1985:21-28; Smith and
Berdan 2003:298, 382; Kaufman 2003:608). Despite being a Nahuatl
borrowing, kot appears in a number of disparate languages such as Yukatek
4
(M:t) (Anderson 2003:276-277; Pata! Majzul and Majzul Lolmay
2007:239), Ch'olti' ("cohf') (Moran 1695), kot or koot in Kaqchikel
(Anderson 2003:276-277), and koot in Uspanteko and Poqom (Kaufman
2003:608). Anderson and Tzuc (2005:99) note:
Pacheco Cruz describes it as a small eagle of high forest, an eater
of insects, lizards, and small birds. This would fit any of the
hawk-eagles or larger hawks. The red color noted in the colonial
dictionaries might suggest the Ornate Hawk-Eagle.
Hunn (1977:142) identifies the Tzeltalan term kok mut (lit. "eagle-bird")
with Harpy Eagle. Additionally, Bruce gives koot ma 'ax for "harpy eagle"
(lit. "eagle-monkey") (1975:263; cf. Roeling, n.d.:246), likely referring to
the fact that Harpy Eagles regularly attack and kill monkeys.
Interestingly, the terms t'iw and koht both appear in Ch'olti', an
extinct language. Therefore, it is not possible to determine if they were
3
Since various species of eagles are found in different areas, and some of the
larger species are now extirpated across much of their range, there could also be a
lot of confusion as to exactly which birds are considered "eagles" by native
speaker~. It may be that "eagle" in many instances simply means 'largest raptor'
or the hke. In our experience working with various Maya groups, this certainly
often seems to be the case.
4 There are no Bald Eagles where the Lakandon Maya live today or anywhere in
In Yukatek; the Cordemex dictionary gives kot as simply "clguila (eagle)" and
"dguila bermeja (red eagle)" (1980:338).
-90-
!ll<ll!vif~- 11!15'~ 2009'f-5Jl
synonyms (perhaps one a native term and the other a borrowing) existing
simultaneously in the language or if they referred to different species of
eagles. It is also notable that the term k6ot is found in Yukatek, but only
t 'iiw appears in its sister language Mopan. Another sister language Itzaj
uses a different term altogether, ch 'uy, based on the well-diffused Mayan
root mentioned above meaning 'to lift up suspended' or 'pick up hanging'
(Tesuc(m 2001 :26; cf. Kaufman and Norman 1984: 119).
Several other species of eagles are mentioned in linguistic sources.
For example, in Yukatek, the term (ah) ek' pip is given for "aguila negra"
(black eagle) (Barrera Vasquez 1980:338) and eek' pip for "large black
hawks in general," which Anderson and Tzuc (2005:110, 155) say focally
refers to the Black Hawk-Eagle. The adjective eek' in Yukatek means
'black', and pip is elsewhere translated more generally as "ave de rapifia
conocida" (known bird of prey) (Barrera Vasquez 1980:656), so it is
difficult to determine the species of raptor being referenced. The term for
Golden Eagle in Yukatek is given as (ah) hum k'ute, "aguila reaf' (Barrera
Vasquez 1980:245).5 In Lakandon,p'oh k'uk'um (lit. "hat-of-feathers") as
"bald eagle" (Bruce 1975:263).6 Another term in Yukatek, "jonkuuk,"
refers to "large eaglets; in former times, focally the now-extirpated Harpy"
(Anderson and Tzuc 2005:110). In Lakandon, the cognate form hunk'uk',
however, can mean a "bird of prey in general," "hawk," or "eagle" (Bruce
1975:147, 256). Roeling (n.d.:247) has a variant (?) of this term sak i
hunk'uk' and balun hunk'uk, which he gives as "golden eagle" (Aquila
chrysaetos). 1
In Lakandon, Roeling (n.d.:246-247) also offers the following data
relating to birds: p'ok'uk'un, Ornate Hawk-eagle (Spizaetus ornatus), sdk
ch 'ich ', small eagle (Elanus?), siJk witz, small eagle species (?) (Elanus?),
5
A curious entry since Golden Eagles are unknown in the Yucatan today.
6
the Maya area, so this entry must be in error.
7
See footnote 5,
-91-
 Eagles in Mesomnerican Thouglit and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
witso('), white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus),' and xoxo' huh,
eagle (Aquila [large species]).
The term koht or kot is attested in the hieroglyphic script at the site
of Edzna for "eagle." Boot has also suggested the term tz'ikin may have
been another Classic-period term (Boot n.d: 17, footnote 31). His argument
is based on a phonetic complement -na which appears on the "Fenton
Vase" after an eagle-head glyph. The -na also appears on Kerr vase 1292,9
where a possible abbreviated form of this term is given as tz'i-na, perhaps
an underspelling of tz 'ikin, a comtnon term for "bird" in modern Mayan
languages. In addition, as mentioned above, the Highland Mayan tem1
tz 'ikin, "bird," in the Maya 260-day calendar corresponds to the Aztec
day~name cuiiuhtli, meaning Heagle," so Boot's suggestion would seem to
hold promise.
Eagles among the Aztecs
Evidence for the importance of eagles in Mexican society is everywhere
present in Mexico today, starting with the Mexican flag itself, which shows
an eagle perched on a cactus devouring a snake. According to Aztec
tradition, the god Huitzilopochtli ordered the Aztecs to migrate south after
they left from the "Seven Caves" to search for a new homeland. They were
told they would know when they reached their destination when they saw a
large eagle seated on a cactns-tree eating its prey. This tradition states that
the Aztecs indeed saw the great eagle sitting on a cactus-tree with a snake
in its mouth; thus, the new Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (lit. tenochtli,
"cactus fruit," -flan, "place of') was founded. From this event (be it mythic
or real), Mexicans today have adopted the eagle seated on a cactus with a
8
Haliae?tus leucocephalus is the scientific name for Bald Eagle, which does not
occur 1n Mesoamerica. Furthennore, White~tailed Eagle is the name of its
Eurasian c~ngener, so this identification is certainly incorrect.
9 (1995:321; cf. Maxwell and Hanson 1992).
Kerr notations reference the photographic collection of Justin Kerr found at
www.fainsi.org.
-92-
!lllmivif~- !1!15~ 2009'1'-S!l
snake in its mouth as their national symbol (Figure 3).
For the Aztecs, tlle eagle was held in pmticularly high regard partly
due to tlle fact that it was believed to be the avatar of the sun (Caso
1958:33; de la Gm·za 1995:65-67; Leon-Portilla and Shorris 2002:655).
For example, the Matritense Codex contains a vivid description of the sun
as an eagle: "The sun has risen, he who gives warmth, the precious child,
the eagle which rises; how will he go on his way?" (Le6n-Pmtilla
1986:141). Based on what he had learned in the Calmecac (a school for
children of Aztec nobility), Sahag(Jn also made the following observation
about the sun: "The Sun, eagle with arrow of fire. Lord of time, god" (from
the Cadice Matritense de Real Palacio, VI, fol. 177, cited in Le6n-Portilla
and Davis 1990:51). Furthermore, in Nahuatl, cuiiuhtli iztac (lit.
"white~eagle") can refer to a "ghost warrior," or it can be a name for the
sun (Bierhorst 1986:101). Finally, in Nahuatl, the morning sun was known
as cuiiuhtlehuanitl, which means "Eagle Ascender," and the evening sun
was called cuiiuhtemoc, or the "Eagle Descender" (Bierhorst 1985: 100). In
a certain cruel irony, the name of the last major tlatoani, or Aztec emperor,
was Cuahtemoc, a name that signifies "Descending Eagle" (cf.
Leon-Portilla and Shorris 2002:655).
Indeed, many personal and place names included the word "eagle"
an10ng the Aztecs (e.g., Cuauhquiiihuac, "eagle-gate location," Cuauhxilotl,
and early 15"'-century lord of Itztapallocan, Culiuhtlahtoa, the ruler or
Tlateloco) (Bierhorst 1985:100-102). Likewise, Mixtec nfillles very often
contained "eagle" in them (e.g., Lord 7 Eagle, 9 Eagle, 3 Alligator
"Shinning Eagle," etc.).
In a sense, the whole of Aztec society was visualized as a
metaphoric eagle. According to Hill and MacLaury, there was a conceptual
connection between eagles and humans related to "the metaphor of society
as a great eagle," where nobles and vassals are said to be "the wings, the
tail," while the ruler resides in "the hair place, the head place" of the eagle
Moreover, eagles were commonly paired or combined with other
-93-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
animals into single entities. This can be seen most often in the feathered
serpent motif (Hultkrantz and Hultkrantz 1981:265; cf. Stross, n.d.). The
famed Plumed Serpent, Quetzalcoatl, embodied the essence of the snake
and either the eagle or the Quetzal. In fact, Cucumatz (i.e., Quetzalcoatl) is
said to have had the power to change himself into an eagle, which the
Popol Yuh states he once did for a week's time (Christenson 2003:275).
Also, in Quetzalcoatl's aspect as Xinhc6atl, he was known as "the soaring
eagle" that could carry the snn along through the sky (Baldwin 1998:xiv).
However, the connection between eagles and jaguars (or sometimes
pumas) was even more significant than that of eagles and snakes. For the
Aztecs, the eagle and the jaguar were both symbols of sky and earth, i.e.,
conceptual opposites representing perhaps the whole of the animal world
(cf. Read 1998:86, 173; Hultkrantz and Hultkrantz 1981:265). There was a
clear notion among the Aztecs that eagles represented the strongest of the
flying animals and the jaguar the most powerful of the land animals. In the
Aztec manuscript MSS Cantares Mexicanos, the tlamatinime ('one who
knows', or 'wise person') ask the "Giver of Life" the following question:
"Perchance, of Giver of life, do we really speak? Even though we may
offer the Give of Life emeralds and ointments, if with the offering of
necklaces you are invoked, with the strength of the eagle, or of the tiger, it
may be that on earth no one speaks the truth" (MSS Cantares Mexicanos,
fol. 62r, cited in Leon-Portilla 1963:74). The "strength of the eagle, or of
the tiger uaguar]" is an expression of extreme, being the epitome of
strength in the basic divided animal world of flyers and land animals.
In short, the speed, power, and agility of eagles were the
characteristics emulated and esteemed by the Aztecs. Therefore, in
Bierhorst's Nahautl-English dictionary cuiiuhtli "eagle" can also
figuratively mean warrior "because he is swift and fearless like an eagle"
(1985:101), which goes far in explaining how eagles and jaguars figured
so prominently into Aztec warfare. Indeed, the pairing of the terms
cuiiuhtli-ocelotl (lit. "eagle-jaguar") was a well-known expression for war
itself (Seier 1902:208).
-94-
lll!ll!v1'~- m15 !/!> 2009 'f- 5 Jl
Aztec women who died in childbirth were also deemed equal to
warriors who had died in battle; therefore, these women were also
considered eagle warriors (Smith and Berdan 2003:154). Such women
were said to take their place in the western sky. There they waited for the
warriors to lead the sun to its zenith, after which they escorted the sun until
it set (Keber 1995:189). In the following section from the Florentine
Codex Book VI, the virtues of woman who died in childbirth are extolled:
Oh my daughter, 0 valiant woman, you worked, you toiled. You
soared like an eagle, you sprang like a jaguar, you put all your
strength behind the shield, behind the buckler; you endured. You
went forth into battle, you emulated our mother, Ciguacoatl
Quilaztli, and now our Lord has seated you on the Eagle Mat, the
Jaguar Mat. You have spent yourself, 0 my daughter, now be
tranquil (Leon-Portilla and Shorris 2002:242).
Therefore, it was not only the high-ranking warriors and other elite who
possessed the characteristics of Aztec nobility, those of the eagle and
jaguar, but also women who died in childbirth were afforded similar
honors.
Eagle and jaguar imagery also surrounded Aztec kingship and
nobility. Aztec society was divided into 20 individual clans (calpullis), one
of the most powerful of which was the Eagle Clan. The highest governing
body was made up of one leader from each of these clans. New emperors
were (usually) elected from these 20 clans. The highest ruler, or tlatoani,
was immediately introduced to eagle paraphernalia and symbolism at the
coronation ceremony. For instance, when the new Tetzcocan ruler was
inaugurated, he was led to a throne called the cuauhicpalli, or "eagle seat,"
that had eagle feathers and jaguar skin decoration. After the crowing
ceremony, he sat on an eagle and jaguar throne that was secured to a litter
and was taken to the Great Pyramid to be given a special jaguar bone for
bloodletting. Thereafter, he went to a place known as the "eagle vessel" to
-95-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought ru1d Mythology (Keny Hull & Rob Fergus)
let blood, the same place where the hearts (called "precious eagle-cactus
fruit") of sacrificial victims were offered up to the gods (see
Aguilar-Moreno 2007:77).
For the Aztec elite, from wruTiors to the emperor himself, eagles
w~re sacred birds that not only represented the Sun God, but whose speed,
ag1hty, and sheer strength exemplified all the noble characteristics that
should be found in the elite.
Eagles, Jaguars, and Warfare among the Aztecs
In Aztec society, eagles were overt symbols of war. This is reflected in the
twenty-day calendar of the Aztecs, the tonalamatl, where the day-sign for
"Eagle" (Cuiiuhtlz) has "warlike inclinations," according to Le6n-Portilla
(1963:117-118). Moreover, eagles, along with jaguars, were viewed as
prototypical warrior figmes (Figme 4). At the local level, part of this
connection is explainable by appealing to a well-known Aztec tradition. In
this myth, when two heroic figmes, Nanahuatzin and Tecuciztecatl
jumped into a raging fire prepared by the gods, an eagle and a jaguar als~
lunged into the flames, but only the eagle was able to carry them out. Thus,
as a reward for their bravery, the two major militruy orders (often referred
to as "knights") developed arnong Aztec warriors: the eagles and the
jaguars (Taube 1993:42). Indeed, the expression cuiiuhtloci!lotl in Nahuatl
was a diphrastic kenning composed of the word "eagle" (cuiiuhtl) and
''.jaguar" (oci!lotl) that simply meant "warrior" (Bierhorst 1985:102). This
pairing was not original with the Aztecs, however, but is attested
· throughout Mesoarnerica, from Teotihuacan, Tula, and Cacaxtla to the
Maya areas of Bonampak, Chichen Itza, and other sites, all pre-dating
Tenochtitlan (cf. Sheets 2003:289).
The Aztec deity, Huitzilopochtli, who was responsible for guiding
the Mixteca to their new homeland in Tenochtitlan, was also the leader of
the Aztec army, whose elite ranks consisted of eagle and jaguar warriors.
Indeed, it was Huitzilopochtli in his eagle form who sat on the cactus in a
-96-
Jlll!lv<:f~- !1115® 2009'1'-S!l
kind of self-fulfilling prophecy to mark the location of the new Aztec
homeland. Huitzilopochtli was known to be able to transform into an eagle
or hummingbird and was feared for his eagle-like aggressiveness. In
addition, the hearts of captives, which were called "precious eagle-cactus
fruit", were sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli, the chief war deity who, it is said,
even took a shield made of eagle feathers at the moment he was born
(Le6n-Portilla 1986:46). Thus, the idea of warfare was intimately tied not
only to the founding of the Aztec kingdom at Tenochtitlan but also to
eagles in a profound way (cf. Sanday 1986: 178).
Nobel regalia and promotions in the ranks were also closely
associated with eagle imagery for Aztec warriors. One means of
advancement in the hierarchy was accomplished by participating in the
yacaxapotlaliztli, "the perforation of the nose" ceremony, for which eagle
and a jaguar bones were used in the piecing rite of passage (Carrasco et al.
2000:49). Fmthermore, the most experienced Mexica warriors who had
captured fom or more captives in hand-to-hand fighting earned the right to
wear the most coveted of the military insignia: headbands with tassels
made from eagle feathers and extended lip-plugs (Tsomas 2005:75).
Aztec warriors in the eagle and jaguar ranks were held in high
respect in society. In an account recorded by Chimalpahin, an Aztec
historian, of the march of Axayactl, the emperor of the Aztecs, and his
army to Purepecha, Chimalpahin's makes use of eagle imagery in
describing the noble wruTiors (cited in Le6n-Portilla 2000:161):
Now we are approaching Michoacan,
they have fallen on them,
they will certainly fall, the old Mexica warriors,
they will come to finish the work, the old eagles
the warrior
Huitznahuatl,
the ancient nobility.
-97-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Eagle and jaguar warriors were part of the upper echelons of Aztec society,
a privilege that brought with it "sumptuary rights bestowed upon them by
the king" and a Hconsultative position with the king in matters of war"
(Headrick 2007:91; cf. Smith 2003:154). One's status among this elite
force meant a life of comfort and influence off the battlefield.
The designation as eagles and jaguars, however, was not simply a
title bestowed upon these elite fighters. Rather, they in fact warred "in
feather-covered suites ... representing eagles, jaguars, coyotes, and so fm1h"
(Hassig 1992:84). These war garments stayed with the each wanfor even
after retiring from the battle ranks. For example, when the Aztec emperor
Montezuma was leading the Spanish into Tenochtitlan, they were greeted
by dancers as well as elderly, retired ·warriors (known
cui.iuhhuehuetqueh) wearing their former eagle and jaguar costmnes and
canying their staffs and shields (Tsouras 2005:54). In Schellhas'
groundbreaking work, "Representation of Deities of the
Manuscripts," he long ago noted the strong connection between eagles and
warriors in the Mesoamerican codices because of the warriors' eagle and
jaguar clothing (1910:335). There are many smviving sculptures, ceramic
figurines, and pictorial representations in early Aztec manuscripts showing
warriors clad in eagle and jaguar attire. The dressing up of warriors as
eagles and jaguars had both mythical and practical implications. Taking
into account the fear people had of both the eagles and jaguars in
Mesoamerica, the mythology associated with eagles and jaguars, as well as
fearsome reputation they had among the Aztec population, an elite force of
warriors decked out in such costumes would likely have been a terrifying
experience for the opposition.
War imagery can also be found in a large number of Nahuatl
expressions that incorporate the term "eagle." For example, one term for
"warrior was the diphrastic kenning cui.iuhtzliltzacochtli, which literally
means "eagle/javelin" (Bierhorst 1985:102). Jn addition, the battlefield was
figmatively referred to as cui.iuhtepet/ (lit. "eagle-city") or cui.iuhtepetitlan
(lit. "at-eagle-city") (Bierhorst 1985:100). The battle cry of the Eagle and
-98-
lll!niv.Y~- lf! IS 'II 2000 '¥ s Jl
Jaguar Warriors was described simply as cuiiuhch6ca, meaning "to
eagle-scream" (Bierhorst 1985:99). These and similar linguistic gems
allow us a much clearer insight into the Aztec mind as to the relationship
between eagles and war.
The connection eagles had to warfare penetrated yet deeper into
Aztec society, where eagles were also intimately associated with human
sacrifice (Miller and Taube 1993:83). In Offering CA of Complex A in the
Templo Mayor at Tenochtitlan, archaeologists discovered a full skeleton of
a Golden Eagle next to 13 sacrificial knives, all of which pointed towards
the west-the direction of the dead (L6pez Lujan 2005:251). Another
offering found at Level 3 of Offering K contained 40 knives, again with
as the bones of a Golden Eagle, with an E-W orientation (L6pez Lujan
2005:275). Such knives were the very instruments used during human
sacrifice.
Maya Jn some cases, the prisoner or sacrificial victim was covered with
eagle down (Keber 1995:180). Sahagun also notes that Aztec priests would
at times dress as eagles while performing human sacrifices (1951: 1).
Certain sacrificial ceremonies consisted of four warriors who "dressed to
represent the military orders of Jaguars and Eagles, and [whoI in tum
fought a prisoner, tied by a long cord to an altar, whose only defense was a
sword in which plumage replaced the obsidian or flint blades" (Thompson
1954:293). The purpose of the sacrificial rite was to extract the heart, or
"precious eagle-cactus fruit," as an offering to certain gods, often
Huitzilopochtli or to the solar deity, Tonatiuh. The sw.eet, red fruit of the
Opuntia species of cactus does strongly resemble small hearts, and they are
eaten by many species of birds. In fact, on an Aztec altar located on the
Temple of the Sacred War an eagle sits on a cactus that has human hearts
in place of prickly pears (see Le6n-Portilla and Shorris 2002:29).
Once the heart was taken from the victim's body, it was placed in a
specially carved round vessel known as the cuauhxical/i, or "eagle vessel"
(Sullivan 2002:29). Ftn1hermore, according to Sahagun, a Franciscan
missionary working with the Aztecs in the 16th century, the captives who
-99-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mytltology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
illlN!v.Y~~ il'!l5!fll 2009'PS!l
were sacrificed were said to become "eagle men." SahagUn states: "The
The well-preserved murals, which are actually executed in an
eagle man is taken upwards, because indeed he who died in war went,
"unmistakably Maya" style, display war scenes in which the losing side is
went looking, sat resting in the presence of the sun. That is, he did not go
shown with eagle helmets and the wirmers with jagum· skins (Hassig
to the place of the dead" (Sahagiln 1950-1982:11:49). In other cases,
1992: 101 ). Also, the art and iconography at the massive site of Teotihuaclm
warriors slain in battle were called cuiiuhtzotzoco/li, which literally means
in the Basin of Mexico show a strong connection between eagles and
an "eagle urn," or cuiihuipiintli (lit. "eagle-banner") (Bierhorst 1985:97,
waniors that has not received much attention (Taube 2004b:314, n.6).
I 02). Thus, we find that at every point from strategizing before warfare to
Clearly, the pairing of the eagle and jagum· was a pan-Mesoanierican
the final sacrifice of captive warriors, eagle imagery and ideology
concept incorporating the characteristics most sought after in
pervaded Aztec society.
warfare-strength, speed, and ferocity.
There are also close correlates to sacrifice and eagles h1 other
Mesoamerican cultures. For example, in the Mixtec Codex Seldon 3135
Eagles and the Ancient Maya
(Pages 11-12) an eagle is depicted in the act of feeding hearts to the Sun
God (or Quetzalcoatl) 10 with the help of a person wearing a tmtle shell
In the Postclassic period, a prophecy by tile priest Xupan Nauat lamented
(Smith 1973:61, Fig. 2b). On the sanie day, a Nahua prisoner, Lord
the day when the ')aguar and the great eagle will be made into shoes by
"Jaguar," is shown lying on his back on an altar as Lord 9 House cuts open
the white man," referring to the defeat of tile Maya warriors at the hand of
his chest (Jansen 1992:29), Also, in Huastec tradition, the Grandmotller
the Spanish (Restall et al. 2005:224). As we have seen, the eagle and the
Aach Eagle was a fearsome deity who required child sacrifice (Alcorn
jaguar were quite simply the embodiment of warfare and sacrifice for the
1984:62, 392; cf. Stross, n.d.). Fwthermore, in the main cenote (sink hole)
Aztecs. The Maya similm·ly considered the eagle and the jaguar to be the
at Chichen Itza a gold disc was found showing a pitiful captive stretched
two most powerful of all the animals (Roys 1967:150). They are thus the
out over a rock with his chest cavity opened and his heart being removed
ideal representations of both the physical (sharp claws, powerful bodies)
(Figure 6). The priest/warrior performing the ceremony wears an eagle
and tactical characteristics (stealthy hunters, high agility) of warfare. An
helmet with flowing plumage. This practice of priests and warriors
especially clear exaniple of tile eagle·wanior motif can be seen on a gold
donning eagle garb during sacrificial rites is found tl!roughout
disc found in tile Sacred Cenote of Chichen Itza, dating to around 1,200
Mesoamerica, especially from the Postclassic period.
A.O., a warrior in the form of an eagle (only his human face is visible in
. Thus, tile eagle-jaguar motif extended well beyond the Aztec
the eagle's mouth) is shown attacldng a foe in battle (cf. Kubler 1993:315)
borders and into the Maya heartland. Between these two areas, however,
(Figure 5). As noted above, on some occasions the sacrifice of the captured
we also see the same patterns in warfare among the murals of Cacaxtla, a
individual was also carried out by a warrior or priest dressed in a full eagle
city in Tlaxcala, Mexico, that was likely inhabited by the Ohneca-Xicalana.
costume (Figure 6). In addition, graphic images from tile Classic period in
the Mexico Valley as well as at Chichen Itza (e.g., the frie2e on the Temple
Smith interprets the snake coming out of the sky as Quetzalcoatl rather th~n the
10
of tile Warriors) in the Yucatan Peninsula depict eagles and jaguars either
Sun God directly (Smith 1973:64). This deity could be related to the Aguila
Sangrienta (Bloody Eagle), who is associated with Quetzalcoatl (cf. Baldwin holding or eating human hearts (see Thompson 1954:131, Fig. 13c).
l 998:vii). Epigraphic data from the Late Classic period also points to a close
-100-
-101-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
relationship between eagles and warfare. Miller and Taube (1993:83) have
noted that in the war expression uto'k'upakal, 'his flint, his shield', which
is a diphrastic kenning likely referring a city's military might (Simon
Martin, pers. comm. to Kerry Hull), the head of an eagle can substitute for
the flint sign-a clear indication of martial ove1tones associated with this
bird.
Additionally, based on the Postclassic Dresden Codex, eagles may
have had a role in the production of rains or floods. On Page 74 of the
Dresden Codex, an eagle is depicted on the head of Chahk, the Maya rain
god, while Goddess 0 pours out destructive flood waters from her upended
vase. Simultaneously, water also flows out of the mouth of Itzamnaaj, an
aspect of God N (Martin 2007:9). The association with these rain-related
deities in the act of causing a great flood certainly implies some role in this
epic flood. As noted earlier, a Tzotzil tradition states eagles or hawks have
certain destrnctive powers (Guiteras Holmes 1961:334). The connection to
eagles and rain is further borne out in another scene on Page 69b of the
Dresden Codex where Chahk is shown seated holding a Harpy Eagle.
We have already seen how eagles are thought to possess
sorcerer-like qualities among the Mixtecs, Aztecs, and the Tz'utujil and
Yukatek Maya. During the Late Classic period, the eagle was one of many
animal figures appearing as a way, 'alter-ego', 'sorcerer', or 'animal spirit'.
On a Late Classic polychrome vessel (Kerr 791), an eagle way is shown
descending from the sky with a snake wrapped around its neck (Figure 7).
This conception of an eagle way has been preserved among the Yukatekan
Maya. In Yukatek, h-way kot given as "brujo-aguila (sorcerer-eagle)"
(Barrera Vazquez 1980:338). The "Uay Kof' [Way K6ot] was most notable
for its remarkable manner of flying. Don Luis of the village of Chan Korn
in the Yucatan described the Uay Kot as follows: "!Cuando el Uay Kot
vuela, uyhh!, !si vieras c6mo vuela!, como un avi6n, hasta cuando pasa
par aqui, es coma si l!avisnara (When the Uay Kot flies, wow! If you
could see how it flies! Like a plane, so much so that when it passes by here,
it's as if it were drizzling" (translation by Kerry Hull) (Re Cruz 1993:69).
-102-
lll!i\!lv?'~- !ll 15 ~ 2000 'P 5 Jl
Re Cruz notes that in the village of Chan Korn, store owners are
sometimes accused of being Uay Kot in order to explain how they have
become so successful, likely through pacts with evil forces (1996:69).
Eagles and the Modern Maya
Among the modern Maya, some of the earlier pre-Conquest associations
regarding eagles have been retained in some form, including certain solar
attributes and connections. Unlike the Aztecs, as far as we know the
connection between the sun and eagles was present but not prominent for
the Ancient Maya (cf. Milbrath 1999:95). However, post-Conquest
evidence does indicate a stronger linking of the sun with eagles (cf. de la
Garza 1995:45, 62). Of the eagle as the sun Milbrath writes: "Occasionally,
the solar bird is an eagle, a bird noted for its pattern of flight circling the
sky and its ability to look directly at the sun. The Lacand6n say that
Hachfikyum created the sun out of limestone and painted a brilliant Harpy
Eagle on his clothes, and this is why the sun is so brighf' (1999:22; cf.
Ratsch and Ma' ax 1984:42).
Other eagles have prognosticatory functions for some Maya today.
Black Hawk-Eagles iu the Yucatan serve as omens (Anderson et al.
2005:55), and the Mopan Maya of Belize say that when the kuxkuxkapi, or
Black Hawk-Eagle, calls between 10:00 and II :00 a.m., it is a sign that
Satan, its boss, is having lunch (Hull and Fergus, n.d.a). Bruce reports that
for the Lakandon Maya "The spots on an eagle are a bad omen" that
foretell things such as illness and fever (1975:150). In addition, the
hunk'uk', meaning "eagle," "hawk," or "bird of prey in general" in
Lakandon, is negative omen signaling a fever (Bruce 1975:147, 256, 263).
Eagles also figure prominently into performance and ritual among
modern Maya groups. First and foremost are the Eagle (Kot) and Jaguar
(B'alam), two important characters in the Achi play known as the Rabinal
Achi. The Eagle and Jaguar are the sacrificial priests of Rabinal, which
likely refers to all people who speak Achi, according to Tedlock (2003:342,
-103-
 Eagles in Mesomnerican Thought and Mythology {Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
346). The dance of the Kaqchikel Maya, known as the Danza de los
Yoladores, is also called xajob'alkot, "Dance of the Eagles" (Hill
2001:121). This is similar to the performance in the Huastec area where
the traditional voladores, who descend from a pole while twirling around
with ropes tied to their ankles, may have developed from the Teenek T'iiw
Bixom, or "Eagle Dance" (Alcorn 1994:45).
As we have seen, Huitzilopochtli and his companion Tezozomoc
were both able to change themselves into eagles. In the Popol Yuh,
Quetzalcoatl (see above) too had the power to change himself (or his
nature) into an eagle and other animals. There is a similar tradition among
the Tz'utujil that 4'sus grandes sefiores antiguos se convertian en una gran
aguila que surcaba /os cielos y que vivia en el nido de las aves (their
high-status ancestors would tum into a huge eagle that would fly across the
skies and that lived in the nest of birds)" (Manch6n Lerman 2006:451).
However, the most famous individual in modem Maya history in terms of
transformation into an eagle is undoubtedly Tecum Umam. In the K'iche'
"Titles from the House of Ixquin-Nehaib", the story is told of one of the
most important battles during the Spanish Conquest in Guatemala, pitting
the ruler of the K'iche', Tecum Umam, against Don Pedro de Alvarado.
Le6n-Portilla's (1986:143) literal translation of the K'iche' text is as
follows:
And then the Spaniards began to fight with the ten thousand
Indians who had with them his captain, Tecum. At first nothing
happened; they only turned each other aside. Then they withdrew
half a league and came together again. They fought three hours and
the Spaniards killed many Indians. It was impossible to count how
many were killed. Not a single Spaniard died; only the Indians, led
by the captain, Tecum. Much blood was spilled from all the Indians
that the Spaniards killed; and this happened in Pachah.
Then the captain Tecum appeared flying like an eagle; the eagle
was covered with feathers which grew from it; they were not false;
it had wings which grew from its body and it had three crowns; one
-104-
fll!l>!vo:t~- ll! 15'1!1 2009'f.5 Jl
was gold, one of pearls, and one of diamonds and emeralds. This
captain Tecum was determined to kill Tunadiu [Alvarado], who
came riding on a horse; he struck the horse so as to strike Alvarado;
and he cut off the horse's head with a bludgeon. It was not an iron
bludgeon but a wooden one with obsidian knives; the captain
Tecum did this by magic. And when he saw that he had not killed
Alvarado but the horse, he returned again, flying like an eagle, so
that from above he could kill Alvarado. Then Alvarado waited with
his lance and ran it through the middle of this captain, Tecum.
This most celebrated event in Guatemalan history raised Tecum to the
legendary status of national hero. Indeed, he was officially declared so on
March 22, 1960 by the Guatemalan govermnent. What is curious in this
story, however, is what is meant when Tecum is said to appear "flying like
an eagle" that "was covered with feathers". In fact, Alvarado marveled
I''
later at the quetzal plumage with which Tecum was adorned on that day, so 11
it seems he was bedecked in a feathery garb-a common practice among
Maya rulers from Preclassic times. The strong connection between war and 11
the eagle, the epitome of agility and power in Mesoamerican thought, is
brought into sharp focus in this narrative ofTecum Umam.
The Bi-cephalic Eagle Motif and the Maya
While eagle motifs are a very common feature of weaving designs among
various Maya groups (cf. Otzoy 1996:151), two-headed eagle motifs are
also found, especially in highland Guatemala. Bi-cephalic bird designs are
regularly seen on woven textiles such as huipi/es (Maya blouses) in
Tz'utujil-speaking areas of Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala (Christenson
2001:140; Hull and Fergus, n.d.b). At Chichicastinango, two-headed eagle
designs are equally as common on Maya blouses and have a long history
of use in the area (Fischer and Hendrickson 2003: 115). In fact, in many
Highland Mayan languages, such as Popti', Tz'utujil, Mam, Sipakapense,
-105-
 Eagles in Mesomnerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Q'eqchi', Uspanteko, Kiche', Kaqchikel, Poqom, and Q'anjob'al, the
terms for "eagle" also refer to a mythological bi-cephalic eagle (see
Kaufman 2003 :606-608). For example, in Kaqchikel, koot re fern to both
1
' c'iguila," "eagle," as well as "Aguila bicifela. Ave mitol6gica, de dos
cabezas. Se representa en las giiipiles de las mujers en algunas
comunidades (Two-headed eagle. Mythological bird with two heads. It is
represented in the huipil dresses of women in some communities)" (Pata!
Majzul and Majzul Lolmay 2007:239). In K'iche', the term koot ("eagle")
is also applied to the "aguila de dos cabezas" (two-headed eagle) which
according to K'iche' mythology, "comia genie antiguamente y tenia
significado para nuestros antepasados (used to eat people anciently and
had significance for our ancestors)" (Apa~aja Tiim 2001: l 41). 11
But what is the temporal distribution of the two-headed bird motif'?
Though the claim has been commonly made that there are no
Precolumbian examples of two-headed eagles in Mesoamerica, and it
therefore must be an adoption during the colonial period (cf. Kroeber
1948:474; Case 1924:472), recent discoveries have shown this argument to
be in error. In Campeche at the site of Hochob there is a graffito of a
double-headed bird present on a structure that almost certainly predates the
Conquest. There is also a picture on the walls of the Dzibichen cave
showing a two-headed bird. Referring to Dzibichen drawing, Stone notes
that "The image of a two-headed bird was a form with pre-Columbian
precedents and so had the added attraction of fumiliarity to the native
artist" (1995:85). The great explorer John Lloyd Stephens, while visiting
the hacienda Tabi in the Yucatan, also reported fmding a "double- headed
eagle, well carved, holding in his claws a sort of sceptre, and underneath
were the figures of two tigern four feet high" that had been taken from the
nearby ruins and used in building the walls of the hacienda (Stephens
l! It . f.
Is o interest to note that a Mopan Maya consultant of ours in Belize told us
that the Squirrel Cuckoo also had two heads because of its crest. Might this
suggest that the double-headed eagle is another reference to crested eagles such
as the Harpy Eagle?
-106-
1843:62).
In the colonial period, double-headed bird motifs were used on the
coat of arms of the K'iche'-Maya C'oyoi lineage and for the Titulo
Totonicapan (Christenson 2001: 139:Fig. 5.19b-c). The colonial-period
manuscript The Chi/am Ba/am of Tzimin mentions yemel ahaw kap'el u
poli, "the descent of the ruler with two heads," possibly referring to the
Spanish king (Roys 1954:18; cf. Stone 1995:45). Also, during the Rabinal
Achi play, a performance that dates back to the colonial era, at one point
the Eagle performer carries a wooden double-headed eagle on his back
(Tedlock 2003:ll).
One such bi-cephalic bird is found today on the wooden altarpiece
in the Roman Catholic Church is Santiago Atitlan. Christenson, who has
made an extensive study of the altarpiece and the Tz'utujil Maya of the
area, connects this image to Tz'utujil oral traditions that tell of a
two-headed bird living in the mountains that is a defender of the
community (Figure 8) (2001:138:Fig. 5.18). With this and all other
two-headed bird motifs, the path of least resistance is to assume they
derived from the eagle of the powerful Hapsburg dynasty that was
commonly used by the Spanish during the colonial period and appeared on
numerous churches. However, Christensen (2001:140) makes the
following important observations:
All traces of this Spanish royal association is forgotten, however, in
contemporary Santiago Atitian. Diego Chavez [one of the sculptors
of the altarpiece] said that the bird has two meanings. For some it is
the Catholic Holy Spirit which "knows the good from the bad." For
most Atitecos, however, the bird is known as the kalkoj ("puma's
child"), a protective divinity who is the animal counterpart of the
mountain gods-both benevolent and malevolent depending on
their mood.
Christenson further notes that the kalkoj double-headed bird motif is fairly
-107-
 lll!i\llv.Y~ - Jil 15 ~ 2009 '!' 5 Jl
Eagles in Mesoameriean Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
to give up building the mountain. Kumix then destroys it with a large
widespread throughout the community and its image can serve as a type of
lightt1ing bolt in order to save the world from the giant eagles.
talisman for protection (2001:140).
As mentioned above, the "aguila de dos cabezas (two-headed
eagle)" of K'iche' mythology was said to eat people in the past (Apacaja
Giant Eagles in Maya Oral Traditions
Tum 2001: 141). Stories of large eagles carrying away small children are so
common in fact throughout Mesoamerica that in 2008 the Museo Nacional
Perhaps the best-lmown oral tradition relating to eagles is the story of the
de Culturas Populares in Mexico held an exhibition entitled, "El Aguila
giant eagles that swoop down to steal away humans, who are then fed to
que se robaba a los nifios (The Eagle that Would Steal Children),"
eaglets in a mountain cave. The humans then have to come up with 'i
creative ways for protecting themselves and eventually for killing the eagle
displaying children's paintings of this and other famous local myths. I
The setting for most versions of this story is the cornfield where a
menace. First and foremost, the broad diffusion of this story all throughout
man is working. The cornfield seems to be an especially dangerous place
Mesoamerica attests to the level of fear and respect held for these large
where eagles can take advantage of laborers by swooping down from
birds of prey. In Mesoamerican oral traditions, the size of these imposing
above and carry them off. A Ch' orti' version of the story begins in this
birds is also highly exaggerated, so much so that they are said to be able to
way: "A 'kajna ke' ayan e'yni inte'winik war ani apatna... i konda k'otoy e
car1y away full-grown adult humans. In the following section, we will
t'iw ... (It is said that there once was a man who was working [in the
present various versions of this myth from different groups in
field] ... and when an eagle _arrived ... " (translation by Kerry Hull) (Perez
Mesoamerica. The continuity in the details of these stories across time and
Martinez 1996:11).
space suggests we are dealing with a core myth that likely stretches far
Among the Ch'ol Maya of Chiapas, Mexico, they tell a story
back into Mesoamerican oral traditions. However, we will also suggest a
entitled, "Iii xiye' tzabu ik'uxu wifiikob," "The Eagle that Ate a Man," in
more modern reinterpretation of the myth based on historical
which a large eagle carried away a man who then escaped by killing the
circumstances.
eagle and using its wings (Meneses Lopez 1986:62-63; cf. Josserand 2003).
The threat of giant eagles killing humans in the mythical past is
Arcos (1988) recorded a similar Ch'ol narrative of large human-eating
also reflected in other oral traditions such as the Story of the Kum ix Angel,
eagles. The following is a full version of the story recorded by Garcia
the great hero myth of the Ch'orti' people (Hull, in press). In this story, the
(1998:25-30) (translated from Spanish by Kerry Hull):
Kumix Angel, the youngest of the lot, has fmally reached his home in
heaven only to find his mother destitute. After taking care of her for a
Long ago there was an enormous eagle (xl'ye ') that was devouring
space of time, he finds out that his older-brother angles (sakumb 'irob'
the people and it would not let them live in peace on the earth. One
anxerob ') are attempting to build a mountain to try to get to heaven
day, a man decided to confront the animal and end this state of
themselves to see their mother. When their mother finds out what they are
oppression. To do it, he set out armed with a knife, protecting his
doing, she quickly tells Kumix to go order them to stop work inunediately.
chest with a rope that he wrapped all around. Upon seeing him, the
Her fear is that if the mountain is completed and the sky and earth are
eagle dropped down on him and grabbed him, taking him away in
connected, giant eagles will be able to easily descend and wipe out the
the air and taking him to its home in a cave in the high parts of a
human population. In the end, Kumix succeeded in convincing the brothers
-109-
-108-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Keny Hull & Rob Fergus)
mountain. During the flight, the man was looking over the land.
Upon arriving at the cave, the eagle threw the man to the
ground and looked at his eyes to make sure he was dead. This
(man), however, had not died since he was protected by the rope.
The eagle went to see its young but soon returned to the place
where it had left its prey and looked again at his eyes. Then the
man got up quickly and, grabbing a large bone of a human that the
eagle had devoured earlier, he hit its head so hard it fell dead. Upon
seeing it dead, he destroyed the young ones and the eggs. This is
how he was able to destroy the eagle that was eating up the people.
Afterwards, the man took his knife, cut the wings of the eagle,
and tying them tightly onto his arms, he tried to fly until he had the
wings finally in place and he made a big effort to do it. First, he
attempted to fly in the cave, and then after he succeeded, to lift
himself up to the sky. He flew throughout the world until he found
his town. Then he began to descend, yelling out to his people that
they not kill him, that it was not the eagle that was descending, but
he. Upon reuniting with his friends, they helped him take the wings
off and he told them about his extraordinary experience.
In this telling of the story, no mention is made of how the humans
attempted to protect themselves while working in the field. A Ch'orti'
rendition of this story, however, relates how a man working in his field had
a wooden cage on his head and back for protection against the eagles.
When an eagle came and took the cage (kororte '), he was left vulnerable.
Indeed, the eagle returned, grabbed him around the waist, and carried him
off to its cave to feed its young. The man, frightened even more upon
seeing a large pile of human bones about, conceived of a plan to escape.
He remembered he had a dagger (suste ') in his pocket, so he killed all the
eaglets. When the mother eagle returned, he killed it too. He then
proceeded to kill off all the other eagles in the same way. Afterwards, in
order to get out of the cave, he took some sap from a nearby tree and
-110-
JltN!v.Y~- ll!I5!/l) 2009'F5Jl
rubbed it all over his body. He then deplumed all the eagles and stuck all
their feathers on himself. Finally, mustering his courage, he jumped from
the cave and flew like a bird (Perez Martinez 1996: 11-12).
In the proceeding summary of this story in Ch'orti', the workers
in the field sought to protect themselves by constructing wooden cages
(kororte ', Sp. cacaste), which is a kind of carrying rack or container
among the Ch'mti' and other Maya groups. 12 The plan was to place these
wooden cages on the back or even over their heads so that when the eagles
grabbed at them with powerful claws, they would only grab the cage and
leave the worker behind. This theme of using such protective devices is
found in numerous versions of this myth among different groups. A
Q'eqchi' version recorded by Hull and Fergus in 2008 provides a good
description of how these protective coverings were built and employed:
Tons timil timil xe'xk'am nak'exk'am se nakewank se' ralal le xul
a'an le t'iw aran wankeb' se pek. Tons nake'cha/ nakexxok
nakeriqa' Ii xul a'an. Tons xeJeb' le q'eq a'an maak'a' chi ?nGS
entons despues ani chik e winq nake'ok chi k'alek nake'ok chi
trab'ajik aq'iink. Entons nake'cha/ i xul a'an naj nake'ri/ chaq se'
choxa. Entos nake'xchap Ii win chi yo yo nake 'xk'am choq tib'el
xwa ixkok'al. Enton Ii winq xetitz' ri/b'a/ chi kama'an kam xe'ok
xb'aanunkil naq nake'xik chi chi k'a/ek chi aq'ink sa lixk'a/eb'. Tons
nike'riiqa }uni chee' nakexyib' kakaste kexye re. Tons re naq a'an
naq nacho! i xul a'an. Tons xsaapu muku ta Ii winq texk'am ma'ta
chi Ii kakaste nalriiqa re naq tk'aman ut · kama'n naxee'ok
xb'alaq'inki/ a'an Ii xul a'an re naq ink'a' chi mas texsach Ii qas
qiitz'in.
Then they [the eagles] come to grab it to carry it as food for their
young in the caves. They soon got used to these animals. Now then
12
By way of example, in l('iche', ko'k means a "wood box for back-packing
(cacaste); cage; jail'' (Christenson, n.d. ).
-Ill-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thouglit and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
li!!ll!v?'~- !l!IS!IO 2009'P5Jl
they began to cany away people, men who were clearing brush in
me)'ra lama e rum. Ma ayan ani luk'a e machit lama e pajrb'irle'.
their bean or cornfields. Then this animal comes, this eagle comes
E 'yni apatnob' upajryo 'b' e te' i tar apajryo 'b' e rum i uyak 'nyo 'b'
to grab and carry away these people, be they men, women, or
ut ejinaj. I koche ma ayan ani tuk'a ub'an e k'in xe'ujanch'akres
children, they carry them away for their young to eat in the caves.
ut e rum ik,ib'an taka e'yni anumuy. Ma'chi una'to'b'jay ayan e
But after a while, they had had enough and they searched for a way
akb'ar o ma'chi unato'b'jay ayan ajk'in. Ajtaka uwiro'b'e ak'b'ar
to protect themselves. Then they began to make cages. And when
iksib 'oner. Inion cheja'xirob 'tya'war e 'yni apatano'b ', uk'echo 'b'
they go to work they would carry their cages on their backs. Then
ayi e kororte' a'xin b'antaka ke' ayan ani, i me)'ra, t'iw. E t'iw che
when the animal came, it took this cage. Thus, they were thinking
uk'uxi ayi e pak'ab'iya'war apatno'b', e pak'ab'ira. Ekmay watar
that it was the men, but actually it was just empty sticks they take.
ja'xir tut e k'in uch'uyi a'xin e pak'ab' two' uk'uxi. Inion che e
And thus they began to trick them for this reason till they were
confounded. pak'ab' ira uche e'yni inte' unukir korortyo'b' twa' ukotb'a
tu'jorob' twa' ukorpesob' ub'o'b'. I tya' watar e t'iw tut e k'in
ja'xtaka e kororte' uch'uyi a'xin e pak'ab' aketpa. I wa'kchetaka
The good news in this and most other versions is that the people eventually
ukotb'a olronte' kororte' tu'jor twa' ma'chi asutpa ak'ujxa umen e
find a way to outsmart the rapacious eagles. In this Q'eqchi' telling of the
l'iw. B'anixto koche'ra ub'an turanob'ub 'an.
story, the fact that they people were able to trick and confound the eagles is
highlighted.
I want to relate a story I remember that was still told long ago. My
A Ch'orti' version of the story recorded and translated by Hull in
grandfather and my father recounted it when they were working.
2002 provides additional details as to the timing and setting of this mythic .
Or when they were seated resting they recounted this story. They
narrative. The storyteller explains how these events happened at the
told that long ago the first people also--, there was a group of first
beginning of the word, when there was no sun or stars. These were the first
people who lived that when God was just making the earth and
people God placed on the earth who were busy tilling and weeding the
ground before planting. placing the sun. First, there was no sun nor were there stars either,
just the sky, the emth, and the rain. And God made it in this way.
And he placed his people on the earth and his animals. They say
K'ani ink'qjli unumer xe' ak'ajnalo ani oni'x i ne'n k'ar nimener.
that these first people would work, they say, and. work, they say, a
Uk'qjtyo'b' ani ninoy i nitata tya' war apatno'b' o tya' turo'b'
lot on the land. There were no machetes made out of carved wood.
ajiryo 'b 'aturan ani uk 'ajtyo 'b 'e k 'qjpesyaj ira. Uk 'ajtyo 'b 'ani ke'
They say they would work and carve sticks and that with them they
oni'x e b'ajxan pak'ab'ob' ub'an ayan ani inmojr b'ajxan
would work the land and weed the surface of the field. And since
pak 'ab'ob' xe 'turanob 'ke 'konde wartokto ani uche e rum e katata'
there was no sun that illuminated the surface of the land, there was
i uturb'a e k'in. B'ajxan ke' ma ayan ant tuk'a e k'in ma ayan ani
only darkness. They did not know if it was night or day. They only
tuk'a ub'an eek' qjtaka ani ut e k'in i e rum i ejaja'r. J e katata'
saw the dark night. Thus they say when they were working, they go
uche ayi koche'ra. I tuturb'a upak'ab'ob' to'r e rum uyarak'ob'.
carrying, they say, cages because there were so many eagles. The
Inion che ke' e b'ajxan pak'ab'ob' ira apatno'b' ayi apatno'b' che
eagles, they say, ate, they say, the people when they were working,
-112-
-113-
 Eagles in Mesoamer:ican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
these people. They came down from the sky and carried away the
people in order to eat them. Therefore, they say the people made
themselves, they say, a big cage to be placed on the heads in order
to protect themselves. And when the eagles came from the sky, they
lifted them away [the cages] but the people remained. And they
would quickly place another cage on their head so that they would
not be eaten again by the eagle. Thus it is like this that they also
lived.
The setting of this story in the creation stages of the earth cast the narrative
back into trnly mythical times. Conspicuously absent, however, is the cave
episode and the clever escape plan. Note also that the Ch'o1ti' used
multiple cages to compensate for each time an eagle made off with one. In
other versions of story, this is not the case, and the men are sometimes
grabbed on the second wave ofattacks.
In some versions, the wooden protective cages are described
simply as "canastas," or "baskets" that workers placed on their heads
when the eagle came (cf. Sociedad Mexicana de Antropologia Mesa
Redonda 1984:429). For example, in a story told by the Northern
Lakandon Maya of Chiapas, Mexico, the people use baskets to protect
themselves from the giant eagles. Of these eagles Reeling (n.d.) writes:
Once monstrous animals lived in the forest, which were hunting the
Lacandones. One of these was the giant eagle, which grabbed the
Lacandones by the hair before eating them. To protect themselves,
the Lacandones used baskets to cover their heads before entering
the forest. In this way, the eagle could not devour the Lacandones
and only captured a basket. Today these animals live in the caves
because Mesabak, the god of rain, ltza Noh K'uh, the god of hail
and Kanan K 'ax, the god of the forest ordered them to.
This Lakandon version of the myth contains several notable items that
-114-
ll!!~v<Y1- lfl 15 ~ 2009 '¥ s Jl
reflect the local situation of the Lakandon. First, in this story, the eagles are
said to grab the Lakandones "by the hair," a detail absent from in versions
in other languages. Lakandon men traditionally have the longest hair of
any other Maya group, which likely explains this addition here. Also, since
the Lakandon are true forest dwellers in the mountains of Chiapas, Mexico,
the capturing is said to happen "in the forest," whereas these attacks
usually take place in the cornfields in other versions.
A Chantal telling of this story also mentions a big basket (chach),
but the context of its use is innovatively incorporated into a larger hero
narrative involving a king, his daughter, and a mighty hunter (Mondrag6n
1982:26-49). The following is a summary of the relevant portion of the
story based on the Spanish and Chantal texts.
Once a town was being harassed by a rouge eagle that was eating
the people. The army tried in vain to kill the menacing bird, but they were
unable to. One day, a mighty hunter arrived in the town and promised to
rid them of the marauding eagle. The king was so grateful that he promised
his daughter's hand in matTiage to the hunter and to crown him king if he
succeeded. The king warned the hunter that the eagle would arrive at
exactly two o'clock-his favorite hunting time. The hunter then made a
request to the king for a large basket (chach) to be placed at the spot where
the princess would be. The hunter then hid himself under the basket as the
people nervously watched while their princess was placed on top of the
basket. When the eagle arrived, it was so large that it darkened the sky as it
flew over. Just as the eagle reached out to grab the basket, the hunter
emerged and shot at the bird while his two dogs leaped up and grabbed
onto its neck. When the eagle felt the dogs latch on, it took off up into the
clouds. After a space of eight days, the eagle finally fell to earth. The
hunter cut out its tongue. However, another man also arrived, and seeing
the eagle was dead, he cut off its head and took it to show the king.
The town was thrilled and held a large banquet in his honor.
Preparations were also begun for this man to marry the king's daughter.
When the hunter found out, he tied a message to the neck of one of his
-115-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
dogs and sent it to the party. When the princess read the letter, it said for
her to ask the man to produce the tongue to prove he killed the eagle. If he
could not, he was not its killer. When they checked, the man did not have
the tongue, so they tied him up to several mules that pulled his body in half
as they ran in different directions. The hunter then produced five parts of
the eagle's tongue. Thus, he was crowned as king. However, the cook, who
was the dead man's sister, wanted revenge. Therefore, she placed a needle
and the bones of frog (puts 'y bak ix much) in his pillow. The next morning
he was dead. The princess mourned his loss with great anguish.
Neve1theless, three days later his dogs dug up his body, but could not
resuscitate him. Just then, some vultures came, one of whom killed another
one, took out his brains, and began rubbing them around. Miraculously,
this brought the hunter back to life. He sent a message tied to his dog again
telling the princess he was alive. She and the town celebrated the return of
the mighty hunter.
In this Chontal version, the tale of menacing eagles is imported into
a love story, that of the might hunter winning the hand of the king's
daughter in marriage. The use of the large basket as a pedestal for the
young maiden rather than as a covering is unique to this story. In the reahn
of myth, such blending of themes is common as a means ofcontextualizing
or romanticizing events. In short, if two stories happened back in the
mythical past, having them take place simultaneously and interdependently
requires no stretch of the imagination.
Myths, however, can be complex amalgamations of imagination,
history, tradition, or other factors. What do we know of the origins of the
marauding eagle story? The Ch'orti' place this story squarely in the
mythical past during the creations stages of the world. This is certainly
implied in other versions as well. In other popular stories, such as trickster
myths in Mesoamerica-that of the rabbit and the coyote-a possible
underlying social commentary is also contained in each recitation. The
coyote, the physically more powerful of the two, is constantly being
deceived and make a fool of by the clever rabbit, despite the rabbit being
-116-
ll!!ll!vif ~ - lll 15 !/ii 2009 '!' 5 Jl
considerable weaker physically. For the Ch'mti' Maya, for example, the
coyote is said to represent Ladinos (i.e., non-indigenous persons) and the
rabbit the Maya. Thus, while the Maya are overtly the underclass, they are
covertly wiser and can outwit Ladinos at will (Hull 2003:214-215). Seen in
this light, these stories are contested narratives against the hegemonic
power structure under which so many Maya today live.
In the case of the myth of eagles that eat humans, there may be a
another type of explanation. Feinberg has argued for a different origin for
this story based in the case of the Huautla of Sierra Mazateca. In the 11.'
Huautla in Sierra Mazateca region of Mexico, there is a popular tradition
of a local hero who slays the man-eating eagle that was putting the village
in danger (see Boege 1992:75). Neiburg (1998) has noted this tradition
among the Huautla oflarge eagles carrying away laborers from their fields.
Sununarizing Neiburg's account, Feinberg states that the story of
giant eagles which would descend upon hapless Mazatec farmers in
their fields and carry them away to be devoured, is in fact a form of
historical memory rendered in the form of myth. The giant eagles,
he [Neigburg] suggests, are in fact the Aztec eagle warriors, who
descended on the passive, unhappy peasants like a force of nature
and carried them back to their capital to rip their hearts out and
feast on the fleshy parts of their limbs (Feinberg 2003:40).
Thus, according to Neigburg, stories of giant eagles taking humans away
to be eaten are traceable to actual events in the time of the Aztecs, whose
famed eagle warriors took captives to be sacrificed, and at times, ate them
in cannibalistic rites (cf. Sanday 1986:172). This intriguing suggestion
posits a historical origin for the giant eagle myth. This could, however,
perhaps include an embellished ending whereby the people are able to
outsmart the murderous "eagles" and also to kill them off. If viewed in the
larger context of the Spanish Conquest, it was the Spanish who, with the
help of embittered rival tribes (i.e., the people who formed the pool of
-117-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Keny Hull & Rob Fergus)
sacrificial victims), were able to ove11hrow Montezuma and therefore ~-
mitigate the threat of human sacrifice. While purely speculative, the
similarities between Aztec culture, eagle warriors, and human sacrifice to
the key components of the giant eagle stories might suggest a historical
footing for some versions of this nairntive, even though they are likely a
reinterpretation of a narrative that stretches far back into Mesoamerican
oral traditions.
It is also quite possible that this story has a basis in actual
experience with real monkey-eating Harpy Eagles. Ancient people seeing
such eagles carry off full-grown monkeys might well worry about the
safety of themselves or their small children. Perhaps in the past when
eagles were more common, earlier peoples may even have protected their
children with baskets or cages while working in their fields. 13 Tims,
perhaps the notion of eagles capable of carrying away humans was not just
something consigned to the realm of myth in the case of the Maya. In fact,
in a 19" century prayer in K'iche' a priest prays to keep the man safe form
dog bites, coughs, fevers, etc. And in the same breath of this mundane
illnesses and undesirable events, the priest asks that the gods not "let an
eagle snatch him away" (Brigham 1887:418).
Conclusion
Throughout Mesoamerica eagles are respected for their power and
agility-the Golden Eagle and Harpy Eagle being the epitome of both of
these characteristics. As we have seen, this explains the common
association of eagles with warfare and sacrifice in Mesoamerican
societies-a fact made especially clear from the copious iconographic data
from Precolumbian times and post-Conquest history. Oral traditions are
13
Fear of eagles may even extend into the ancient human past, as markings on a
2.4 million year old Australopithecine skulls indicate that these ancient
homonids at least occasionally fell prey to large eagles (Berger & McGraw
2007).
-118-
lll!~v<)'~- mts 'Iii 2009&¥ s Jl
also replete with eagle characters, paiticulai·ly involving interactions with
humans. As we have suggested, the widely diffused traditions of giant
eagles capturing humans in Mesoamerican may themselves have been in
pait a reinterpretation of this narrative based the experience of real-life
events. Indeed, throughout all Mesoamerican societies, eagles were no
where more important than among the Aztecs, where eagle ideology
dominated military and elite ranks, pervaded religious practices, and
served as a metaphor for the Aztec people themselves. Jn short, eagles in
Mesoamerica are powerful symbols of not only physical prowess, but also
of mythical abilities relating to sorcery and magic, all of which attest to
their considerable status in these societies.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Reitaku University for providing two research
grants (2008 and 2006) for ethnoomithological research in Belize and
Guatemala, which provided invaluable data for this study.
Figures
l
I
I
-
I
I
a. b.
Figure I. a) The crest ofa Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja), b) An avian head found
on the right shoulder of the Olmec Las Limas Figure, likely representing a
Harpy Eagle with an erectile crest (Reilly 1.995:154) (Drawings by Kent
Reilly III).
-119-
 ·-, - f

Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus) I''

Figure 2. Image of an eagle capturing a rabbit as it escapes from a serpent's mouth

in the Codex Borgia (after Seier et al. 1902:20 I, Fig. 214).

Figure 4. Eagle and Jaguar warriors from the Codex Borbonicus.

-·----··- .. -- ... ~---

Figure 5. Depiction of an attacking eagle warrior on a gold disc found in the Sacred
Figure 3. Tenochtitlan Temple stone carved with an image of an eagle devouring a Cenote of Chichen ltz.a (after Christenson 2003:275, Fig. 73, in Lothrop
snake while standing atop a cactus surrounded by water, drawing upon the 1952, Fig. 41).
city's founding myth (Drawing by Linda Schele).
-120- -121-

I,,i
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mytl10logy (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
-r

Figure 7. Image from a "Late Classic" Maya polychrome vessel showing a

descending eagle way ("alter~ego" or "sorcerer") with a snake coiled
around its neck (Kerr vessel 791, photograph by Justin Kerr).

Figure 6. Drawing from a gold disc found in the main cenote of Chichen Itza
showing a man's heart being extracted during a human sacrifice by a
priest/warrior dressed as an eagle (after Thompson 1964:131, Fig. 13b).

;_

t
!
I Figure 8. Two-headed bird motif (known as kallwj in Tz'utujil) on the altar piece in
I- the Roman Catholic Church in Santiago, Atitlan, Guatemala (drawing by
Allen Christensen [Christenson 2001: 138, Fig.5.18]).

-122- -123-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Bibliography
Aguilar-Moreno, Manuel. 2007. Handbook to Life in the Aztec World.
Second Edition. Oxford University Press.
Ajpacaja Tum, Pedro Florentino, Pedro Florentino Ajpacajit Tum, Manuel
Isidro Chox Tum, Francisco Lucas Tepaz Raxuleu and Diego Adrian
Guarchaj Ajtzalam. 2001. Diccionario k'iche'. Proyecto Lingiiistico
Francisco Marroquin, Proyecto Lingliistico Francisco Marroquin.
Guatemala: Cholsamaj Fundacion.
Alcorn, Janis. 1984. Huastec Mayan Ethnobotany. Austin: The University
of Texas Press.
Anderson, Eugene Newton, and Felix Medina Tzuc. 2005. Animals and the
Maya in Southeast Mexico. Tucson: University of Arizona Press.
Anderson, Eugene Newton, Felix Medina Tzuc, and Pastor Valdez Chale.
2005. Political Ecology in a Yucatec Maya Community. Tucson:
University of Arizona Press.
Andersen, Henning. 2003. Language Contacts in Prehistory: Studies in
Stratigraphy. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Arcos, Francisco. 1988. Kolem bil xiye' [Big Eagle]. In Jose Alejos Garcia,
Wajalix ba t'an; narrativa tradicional ch'ol de Tumba/O., Chiapas, pp.
25-30. Centro de Estudios Mayas, Cuaderno 20. Mexico, D. F.:
Universidad Nacional Aut6noma de Mexico.
Aulie, H. Wilber., and Aulie, Evelyn. W. 1978. Diccionario ch'ol-espai'iol,
espaflol-ch 'of. Mexico City, Serie de Vocabularios y Diccionarios
Indigenas, Mariano Silva y Aceves no. 21, Mexico, D.F.: Instituto
Lingliistico de Verano.
Baldwin, Neil. 1998. Legends of the Plumed Serpent: Biography of a
Mexican God. New York, New York: PublicAffairs.
Barrera Vasquez, Alfredo. 1980. Diccionario Maya Cordemex. Mexico:
Ediciones Cordemex.
Bastarrachea M., Ram6n, J., Yah Pech, E., and Briceflo Che!, F. 1992.
Diccionario basico Espaflol-Maya-Espaiiol. Maldonado Editores,
-124-
Merida.
Berger, L.R., and McGraw, W.S. 2007. "Further Evidence for Eagle
Predation of, and Feeding Damage on, the Taung Child." South
African Journal ofScience 103:496-498.
Bierhorst, John.1985. A Nahuatl-English Dictionary and Concordance to
the Can/ares Mexicanos with an Analytic Transcription and
Grammatical Notes, Cantares en idioma mexicano. Stanford, CA:
Stanford University Press.
Boege, Eckart. 1992. Contradicciones en la identidad etnica mazateca:
construyendo un objeto de estudio. Nueva Antropologia. Revista de
Ciencias Socia/es, No. 43, 1992, pp. 61-81.
Bolles, David. 1997-. Combined Dictionary-Concordance ofthe Yucatecan
Il Mayan Language (revised 2003). Foundation for the Advancement of
Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI).
URL: http://www.famsi.org/reports/96072/index.html.
l Boot, Erik. n.d. Loanwords, "Foreign Words," and Foreign Signs in Maya
[ Writing. Paper presented at the symposium "The Idea of Writing III:
I Loanwords in Writing Systems," June 7-9, Research School CNWS,
Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands. Manuscript in possession
ofauthors.
I' Brigham, William Tufts. 1887. Guatemala: The Land of the Quetzal: A
Sketch. T. Fisher Unwin.
i
I
Brnce, Robert D. 1975. Lacandon Dream Symbolism: Dream Symbolism
and Interpretation Among the Lacandon Mayas of Chiapas, Mexico.
Mexico: Ediciones Euroamericanas.
Carrasco, David, Lindsay Jones, and Scott Sessions. 2000. Mesoamerica's
Classic Heritage: From Teotihuacan to the Aztecs. Boulder:
University Press of Colorado.
Case, Clarence Marsh. 1924. Outlines of Introductory Sociology: A
Textbook of Readings in Social Science. Harcourt, Brace and
Company.
Caso, Alfonso. 1958. The Aztecs; People of the Sun: People of the Sun.
-125-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.
Christenson, Allen J. 2003. Popol Vuh: The Sacred Book of the Maya: The
Great Classic of Central American Spirituality, Translated from the
Original Maya Text. Winchester, U.K.:Books.
Christenson, Allen J. 200 I. Art and Society in a Highland Maya
Community: The Altarpiece ofSantiago Atitlan. Austin: University of
Texas Press.
Christenson, Allen J. n.d. K 'iche '-English Dictionary and Guide to
Pronunciation of the K'iche'-Maya Alphabet. Unpublished dictionaiy
online at
http://www.famsi.org/mayawriting/dictionaiy/christenson/quidic_com
plete.pdf.
Cadice Matritense de Real Palacio (Nahuatl text of the Indian informants
of Sahagful). 1906. Facsimilie ed. of Vol. VI (Part 2) ai1d Vol. VII by
Franscisco del Paso Y Troncoso. Madrid: Hauser y Menet.
De la Garza, Mercedes. 1995. Aves sagradas de los mayas. Universidad
Nacional Aut6noma de Mexico. Mexico: Centro de Estudios Mayas,
UNAM.
Delgaty, Alfa H. and Agustin Ruiz Sanchez. 1978. Diccionario Tzotzil de
San Andres (Larrainzar) con variaciones dialectales. Mexico, DF:
Instituto Lingllistico de Verano.
Feinberg, Menjamin. 2003. The Devil's Book of Culture: History,
Mushrooms, and Caves in Southern Mexico. Austin: University of
Texas Press.
Fisher, Edward F., and Carol Elaine Hendrickson. 2003. Tecpan
Guatemala: A Modern Maya Town in Global and Local Context.
Westview Press.
Garcia, Jose Lejos. 1998. Wajalix Ba T'an: Narrativa tradicional ch'ol de
Tumbala, Chiapas. Centro de Estudios Mayas, Cuaderno 20. Mexico:
Universidad Nacional Aut6noma de Mexico.
Gilardi, John. 1997. Songs from a (Vanishing) Belizean Rainforest, Songs
for Gaia. Data insert in CD.
-126-
lll!l!lv.Y~- Jilts'll! 2009'¥5Jl
Girard, Rafael. 1949. Los chortis ante el problema Maya: Historia de las
culturas indigenas de America, desde su origen hasta hoy. 5 vols.
Antiqua Libreria Robredo, Mexico City, Mexico.
Guiteras Holmes, Calixta. 1961. Perils of the Soul: The World View of a
Tzotzil Indian. New York: Free Press of Glencoe.
Hartshorn, G., Nicolait, L., Hartshorn, L., Bevier, G., Brightman, R., Cal, J.,
Cawich, A., Davidson, W., DuBois, R., Dyer, C., Gibson J., Hawley
W., Leonard J., Nicolait, R., Weyer, D., White, H., White, H., and
Wright, C. 1984. Belize, Country Environmental Profile: Country
Environmental Profile, a Field Study. USAID Contract San Jose.
Trejos. Hnos. Sues. S.A., pp. XVI-152.
Hassig, Ross. 1992. War and Society in Ancient Mesoamerica. Berkeley:
University of California Press.
Headrick, Annabeth. 2007. The Teotihuacan Trinity: The Sociopo/itical
Structure of an Ancient Mesoamerican City. Austin: University of
Texas Press.
Hill, Jane H. and Robert E. MacLaury. 1995. The Terror of Montezuma:
Aztec History, Vantage Theory, and the Category of "Person." In
Language and the Cognitive Construal of the World, edited by John
R. Taylor and Robert E. MacLaury, pp. 277-330. Walter de Gruyter.
Hill, Robert M. 200 I. Los kaqchikeles de la epoca colonial: Adaptaciones
de los mayas de altiplano al gobierno espailol, 1600-1700.
Contributor Maria Cristina Vidal Lorenzo, Eddy H. Gaytan.
Cholsamaj Fundacion.
Howell, Steve. N.Cl, and Sophie Webb. 1995. Birds of Mexico and
Northern Central America. New York: Oxford University Press.
Hull, Kerry. (in press). The Grand Ch'orti' Epic: The Story of the Kumix
Angel. To appear in Acta Mesoamericana, Vol. 22, edited by
Genevieve Le Fort. Verlag Anton Saurwein, and Markt Schwaben,
Germany.
Hull, Kerry. 2003. Verbal Art and Performance in Ch 'orti' and Maya
Hieroglyphic Writing. Ph.D. Dissertation, Department of
-127-
 ll!ll!v?'~ - m15 1!) 2009 'F 5 !l
Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
and Lyle Campbell, pp. 77-166. Institute for Mesomnerican Studies
Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin. Printed by UM!.
Publication no. 9. State University of New York, Albany.
Hull, Keny, and Rob Fergus. (n.d.a). Q'eqchi' and Mopan field notes from
Keber, Eloise Quifiones. 1995. Codex Telleriano-Remensis: Ritual,
fieldwork carried out in Belize in 2008.
Divination, and History in a Pictorial Aztec Manuscript. Austin:
Hull, Kerry, and Rob Fergus. (n.d.b) Tz'utujil field notes from fieldwork
University of Texas Press.
cmTied out in Guatemala in 2008.
King, Linda. 1994. Roots of Identity: Language and Literacy in Mexico.
Hultkrantz, Ake, and Ake Hultkrantz. 1981. The Religions ofthe American
Stanford. CA: University Press.
Indians. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Kroeber, Alfred Louis. 1948. Anthropology: Race, Language, Culture,
Hunn, Eugene S. l 997. Tzeltal Folk Zoology: The Classification of
Psychology Prehistory. Second Edition. Harcourt, Brace.
Discontinuities in Nature. New York: Academic Press.
Kubler, George. 1993. The Art and Architecture of Ancient America: The
Jansen, Maarten. 1992. Mixtec Pictography: Conventions and Contents. In
Mexican, Maya, and Andean Peoples. Third edition. New Haven, CT:
Epigraphy. Supplement to the Handbook of Middle American Indians,
Yale University Press.
Vol. 5, volume editor Victoria Reifler Bricker. Austin: The University
Leon-Portilla, Miguel. 1963. Aztec Thought and Culture: A Study of the
of Texas Press. Ancient Nahuatl Mind, trans. by Jack Emory Davis. Norman:
Josserand, Kathryn. 2003. Story Cycles in Chol (Mayan) Mythology:
University of Oklahoma Press.
Contextualizing Classic Iconography. A report submitted to the
Leon-Portilla, Miguel. 1986. Pre-Columbian Literatures of Mexico.
Foundation for the Advancement of Mesomnerican Studies, Inc.
Translated by Grace Lobanov. Norman: University of Oklahoma
(F.A.M.S.I.).
Press.
URL: http://www.famsi.org/reports/01085/section08.httn.
Le6n-Portilla, Miguel. 2000. Fifteen Poets of the Aztec World. Noiman:
Josserand, Kathryn, and Nicholas Hopkins. Chol Ritual Language. A
University of Oklahoma Press.
report submitted to the Foundation for the Advancement of
Le6n-Portilla, Miguel, and Jack Emory Davis. 1990. Aztec Thought and
Mesoamerican Studies, Inc. (F.A.M.S.I.).
Culture: A Study of the Ancient Nahuatl Mind. Translated by Jack
URL: http://www.famsi.org/reports/94017 /index.html.
Emory Davis. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.
Justesen, John, William Norman, Lyle Campbell, and Terrance Kaufman.
Le6n-Portilla, Miguel, and Earl Shonis. 2002. Jn the Language of Kings:
1985. The Foreign Impact on Lowland Mayan Language and Script.
An Anthology of Mesoamerican Literature Pre-Columbian to the
Middle American Research Institute Publication 53.
Present. W. W. Norton & Company.
Kaufman, Terrence. 2003. A Preliminary Mayan Etymological Dictionary,
Long C. Rebecca, and Sofronio Cruz M. 2000. Diccionario Zapoteco de
with the assistance of John Justesen. A report for the Foundation for
San Bartolome Zoogocho Oaxaca, Segunda edici6n, electronica.
the Advancement ofMesomnerican Studies, Inc. (FAMSI).
Instituto Lingliistico de Verano, A.C. Coyoacan, D.F., Mexico.
URL: http://www.famsi.org/reports/O 1051/pmed.pdf.
Lothrop, Smnuel Kirkland. 1972. Metals from the Cenote of Sacrifice,
Kaufman, Tenence., and Norman, Willam. M. 1984. An Outline of
Chichen ltza, Yucatan. Memoirs of the Peabody Museum of
Proto-Chelan Phonology, Morphology, and Vocabulary. In
Archaeology and Ethnology, Hmvard University, Vol. 1O, No. 2.
Phoneticism in Maya Hieroglyphic Writing, edited by John J. Justesen
-129-
-128-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican TI10ugltt and Mytlmlogy (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)
Cambridge: Peabody Museum.
L6pez Lujan, Leonardo. 2005. The Offerings of the Temp/a Mayor of
Tenochtitlan. Albuquerque, NM: UNM Press.
Lutz, Richard L., and Dick Lutz. 2005. Belize: Reefe, Rain Forests, and
Mayan Ruins. Dimi Press.
Maxwell, Judith D., and Craig A. Hanson. 1992. Of the Manners of
Speaking That the Old Ones Had: The Metaphors ofAndres de Olmos
In the TULAL Manuscript Alte para Aprender la Lengua Mexicana
I 547. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.
Manch6n Lerman, Debora. 2006. El arte de las tejadores y los escnltores
nawales maya-tz'utnhiles. In El proceso creativo: XXVI co/oquio
internacional de historia de! arte, edited by Alberto Dalla!, pp.
451-469.Universidad Nacional Aut6noma de Mexico. Instituto de
Investigaciones Esteticas. Mexico: Universidad Nacional Aut6noma
de Mexico.
Martin, Simon. 2007. The Old Man of the Universe: A Unitary Dimension
within Ancient Maya Religion. Chapter for a volume "Maya
Shamanism," edited by Loa Traxler. Manuscript in possession of
authors.
Meneses L6pez, Miguel. 1986. K'uk' Witz, Cerro de los Quetzales;
tradici6n oral cha! de/ Municipio de Tumbala. Direcci6n de
Fortalecimiento y Fomento a las Culturas, Sub-Secretarla de Asuntos
Indlgenas, Secretarla de Desarrollo Rural. [Estado de] Chiapas.
Milbrath, Susan. 1999. Star Gods ofthe Maya: Astronomy in Art, Folklore,
and Calendars. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Miller, Mary, and Karl Taube. 1993. The Gods and Symbols of Ancient
Mexico and the Maya: An Illustrated Dictionary of Mesoamerican
Religion. New York: Thames and Hudson.
Mondrag6n, Rafael. 1982. Cuentos de tres reales: Antiguas pa/abras
chontales, V. 2. Villahermosa, Mexico. FONAPAS Tabasco.
Moran, P. 1695. Arte en la lengua cha/ti que quiere decir lengua de los
milperos. ms. Phildelphia.
-130-
llf!l!!v>Y~- !1!15~ 2009<p5Jl
Munro, Pamela, and Felipe H. Lopez. 1999. Di'csyonaary X:tee'n Dii'zh
Sah Sann Lu'uc: Zapotec, English, Spanish Dictionary, V.2. UCLA
Chicano Stndies Research Center Publications.
Nations, James D. 2006. The Maya Tropical Forest: People, Parks, &
Ancient Cities. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Neiburg, Federico G. 1988. Identidad y Conjlicto en la Sierra Mazateca:
El Caso de/ Consejo de Ancianos de San Jose Tenango. Colecci6n
Divulgaci6n, Mexocp. OMAJ. ENAH.
Nuttal, Zelia. 1901. The Fundamental Principles of Old and New World
Civilizations: A Comparative Research Based on a Study of the
Ancient Mexican Religious, Sociological and Calendrical Systems.
Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology.
Otzoy, Irma. 1996. Maya Clothing. In Maya Cultural Activism in
Guatemala, edited by Edward F. Fischer, and R. McKenna Brown, pp.
141-155. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Pacheco Cruz, Santiago. 1919. Lexico de la fauna Yucateca. Merida.
Pata! Majzul, Filiberto, and Filiberto Pata! Majzul Lolmay. 2007. Rusoltzij
Ri Kaqchikel: Diccionario Estandar Bilingile Kaqchikel-Espafiol.
Guatemala: Cholsamaj Fundacion.
Perez Hernandez, Jeremias Misael. 2003. Pujb'il Yo/ Mam!Vocabulario
Mam. PublicAffairs. K'ulb'il Yo! Twitz Prudi, Academia de Lenguas
Mayas de Guatemala. Guatemala.
Perez Martinez, Vitalino, Federico Garcia, Felipe Martinez, and Jeremias
L6pez. 1996. Diccionario de! idioma Ch'orti'. La Antigua
Guatemala: Proyecto LingUlstico Francisco Marroquin. Guatemala.
Ratsch, Christian, and K'ayum Ma'ax. 1984. Ein Kasmos im Regenwald.
Cologne: Eugen Diederichs Verlag.
Re Cruz, Alicia. 1996. The Two Mi/pas a/Chan Kam: Scenarios ofa Maya
Village Life. Albany: SUNY Press.
Read, Kay Almere. 1998. 1!me and Sacrifice in the Aztec Cosmos:
Religion in North America. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Reilly, Kent F. III. 1990. Olmec Iconographic Influences on the Symbols
-131-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Thought and Mythology (Keay Hull & Rob Fergus)
of Maya Rulership: An Examination of Possible Sources. In Sixth
Palenque Round Table, edited by Merle Greene Robertson, pp.
151-166. Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press.
Restall, Matthew, Lisa Sousa, and Keven Te1mciano. 2005. Mesoamerican
Voices: Native-language Writings from Colonial Mexico, Oaxaca,
Yucatan, and Guatemala. Cambridge University Press.
Rice, Pmdence M. 2007. Maya Calendar Origins: Monuments, My/history,
and the Materialization a/Time. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Roeling, Sebastiaan. n.d. Shadows of Bonampak: An Extensive
Ethnography a/the Lacandon Maya o/Chiapas, Mexico. Lulu.com.
Roys, Ralph Loveland (trans.). 1954. The Maya Katun Prophecies of the
Books of Chi/am Balam, Series I. Contributions to American
Anthropology and History, 12 (57): 1-60. Carnegie Institution of
Washington, Washington.
Roys, Ralph Loveland 1967. The Book of Chi/am Balam of Chumayel.
Forgotten Books. Originally published through the University of
Oklahoma Press.
Sahagun, Fray Bernardino de. 1950-1982. The Florentine Codex: General
History of the Things a/New Spain, Volume 2. Translated by Arthur J.
0. Anderson, Charles E Dibble. School of American Research, 1982.
University of Virginia.
Sahagun, Fray Bernardino de. 1951. The Florentine Codex: General
History of the Things of New Spain Book 2- The Ceremonies, edited
by Arthur J. O. Anderson and Charles E. Dibble. Santa Fe: School of
American Research and University of Utah.
Sanday, Peggy Reeves. 1986. Divine Hunger: Cannibalism as a Cultural
System. Cambridge University Press.
Schellhas, Paul. 1910. Representation of Deities of the Maya Manuscripts,
second edition. Translated by Selma Wessellioeft and Alberta M.
Parker. Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and
Ethnology, Harvard University, Vol. 4, No. I.
Schumann, Otto. 1973. La Lengua Chol, de Ti/a (Chiapas). UNAM,
-132-
l/li\l!v'1~- m15'/>l 2009 'P 5 Jl
Centro de estudios Mayas, Cuaderno 8, Mexico, D.F.: Universidad
Nacional Aut6noma de Mexico.
Seier, Eduard, Joseph Florimond Loubat, and Augustus Henry Keane.
l 902. Codex Fejervary-Mayer: An Old Mexican Picture Manuscript
in the Liverpool Free Public Museums (12014/M). Translated by
Augustus Henry Keane. Printed by T. and A. Constable at the
Edinburgh University Press.
Sheets, Payson D. 2003. Wmfare in Ancient Mesoamerica: A Summmy
View. In Ancient Mesoamerican Watfare, edited by M. Kath1yn
Brown and Travis W. Stanton, pp. 287-302. Rowman Altamira.
Smith, Mmy Elizabeth. 1973. The Relationship between Mixtec
Manuscript Painting and the Mixtec Language: A Study of Some
Personal Names in Codices Muro and Sanchez Soils. In
Mesoamerican Writing Systems: A Conference at Dumbarton Oaks,
October 30 & 31st, 1971, edited by Elizabeth P. Benson, pp. 47-98.
Washington D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks.
Smith, Michael Ernest, and Frances Berdan. 2003. The Postc/assic
Mesoamerican World Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.
Sociedad Mexicana de Antropologia Mesa Redonda. 1984. lnvestigaciones
recientes en el area Maya: XVII Mesa Redondo, Sociedad Mexicana
de Antropologfa, SN. Crist6bal de las casas, Chiapas, 21-27 junio
1981. Sociedad Mexicana de Antropologia Mesa Redonda.
Stephens, John Lloyd. 1843. Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, Vol. 2. John
Murray.
Stone, Andrea J, 1995. Images from the Underworld: Na} Tunich and the
Tradition ofMaya Cave Painting. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Stross, Brian. n.d. A Maya Iconographic "Literary" Convention.
Unpublished manuscript.
URL: http://www.utexas.edu/courses/stross/papers/allusion.rtf.
Sullivan, Lawrence Eugene. 2002. Native Religions and Cultures of
Central and South America: Anthropology of the Sacred. Continuum
International Publishing Group.
-133-
 Eagles in Mesoamerican Tltought and Mytltology (Kerry Hull & Rob Fergus)

Taube, Karl A. 1993. Aztec and Maya Myths. Austin, TX: University of
Texas Press.
Taube, Karl A. 2004a. Olmec Art at Dumbarton Oaks. Washington D.C.:
Dumbarton Oaks.
Taube, Karl A. 2004b. Tetitla and the Maya Presence at Teotihuacan. In
The Maya and Teotihuacan: Reinterpreting Early Classic Interaction,
edited by Geoffrey E. Braswell, pp. 273-314. Austin: University of
Texas Press.
Tedlock, Dennis. 2003. Rabinal A chi: A Mayan Drama of War and
Sacrifice. Translated and interpreted by Dennis Tedlock. Oxford
University Press.
Thompson, Sir Eric Sidney. 1954. The Rise and Fall of the Maya
Civilization. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.
Thompson, Sir Eric Sidney. 1960. Maya Hieroglyphic Writing: An
Introduction. Second Edition. Norman: University of Oklahoma
Press.
Tesuc(m, Tomasa Nazira Cham. 2001. Jiilt'an Maya Itza/Vocabulario Itza,
Itza-Espai!ol, Espa!!ol - Itza. K'ulb'il Yo! Twitz Paxil, Academia
de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala. Guatemala.
Tezozomoc, Alvarado. n.d. Cr6nica mexicayotl.
Tsouras, Peter. 2005. Montezuma: Warlord ofthe Aztecs. Brassey's Inc.
Ucholaj Ch'a1eem: Vocabulario Achi. 2000. K'ulb'il Yo! Twitz Paxil,
Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala. Guatemala.

-134-