Female Figure

The traces of black and blue pigment seen on the headdress and skirt of this extremely rare wood sculpture are indicative of the Aztec goddess of water known as Chalchihuitlicue. The name means “she of the precious jade skirt.” For the Aztec and other Mesoamerican civilizations, jade and other greenstones symbolized the life-giving power of water. Chalchihuitlicue presided over aquatic rituals, particularly in late spring; the plant remains found in the round disc over her chest may be evidence of these rites. Although the stiff pose is typical of Aztec art, the figure’s face is finely modeled. This suggests a dynamic tradition of wood carving that is now almost completely unknown, as many fragile wooden sculptures were either destroyed during the 16th-century Spanish invasion or have decayed through the centuries.