This stamp from Mexico depicts a sculpture of Coatlicue, Aztec goddess of life and death. She gets her name from her skirt of serpents. While this might seem harrowing, the site Goddess a Day explains why being a "devouring mother" is not as negative as it sounds.
The Coatlicue stamp is from the 1976 series Arte y Ciencia de Mexico (Art and Science of Mexico). The sculpture was originally part of the Tenochtitlan temple, until Spanish conquistadors buried her as a pagan idol. According to the Interweb, the sculpture was unearthed in Mexico City in 1790 and delivered to the Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico. Fearing she would awaken ancient beliefs and out-of-place with other artifacts at the University, the sculpture was reburied. In the early 1800s, the sculpture was unearthed for a private viewing by German naturalist Alexander von Humboldt, but it was re-interred upon his departure. The sculpture was once again uncovered, this time permanently, in 1824, but it was viewed with embarrassment and placed in storage until it received a prominent displace space at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Britannica Online features a picture of the massive statue.
See other yellow stamps, this week's theme for Sunday Stamps, at Viridian's Postcard Blog.
4 comments:
I understand the worry about awakening pagan beliefs. I don't understand the embarrassment. Maybe because the statue shows female anatomy?
Anyway, interesting, and thank you for participating.
A skirt of serpents sounds uncomfortable to say the least. But I love the stamp as I love all things Mexican.
Maybe they were embarrassed about the past that she represented?
I used to lead training courses in Mexico City so I am particularly please to see this stamp. Thanks for the story behind the statue it adds value to yor post.
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