Ritual Impersonator of the Deity Xipe Totec
Aztec (Mexica)
1450–1500
Medium
Ceramic and pigment
Dimensions
H.: 58.4 cm (23 in.)
Classification
sculpture
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
12742
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
As a god of the late dry season and early rainy season (May–June), Xipe Totec (“The Flayed One”) expresses regeneration. By the time of Spanish contact in 1519, the cult of this deity was widespread throughout Mesoamerica. This figure depicts a young male wearing the skin of a sacrificed victim, a primary symbolic aspect of rituals conducted during agricultural fertility ceremonies dedicated to this deity. The lines across the chest represent stitched seams where the skin was fastened. Like livi...