Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli

The original statuette of this small-format figure comes from central Mexico and is most likely of Aztec origin. It is made from greenstone with inlays of what might be Koralle's spondylus. The figure shows Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the “Lord of the Dawn”, representing Venus as the morning star, one of the representations of Quetzalcoatl, a creator god. It is decorated with several symbols, including feathers for Quetzalcoatl and a radiated sun disk on the reverse with the sun god in opposition to Venus. The original object was in the hands of Philipp Hainhofer (1578-1647), a German merchant and art agent from Augsburg, before it became part of the Kunstkammer of the Dukes of Württemberg, founded by Duke Friedrich I (1593-1608). The original object’s journey from Mesoamerica to Europe initially ended in a treasure chamber, where it became something exotic, while it became subsequently part of the newly founded Landesmuseum Württemberg in Stuttgart, where it is now part of the collection on European history. It was only through a faithful copy of the original statuette, i.e. through a secondary object and a secondary movement, that the actual object could ‘virtually’ become part of a collection related to America, the BASA Museum of the University.

The original statuette of this small-format figure comes from central Mexico and is most likely of Aztec origin. It is made from greenstone with inlays of what might be Koralle's spondylus. The figure shows Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, the “Lord of the Dawn”, representing Venus as the morning star, one of the representations of Quetzalcoatl, a creator god.

Plaster cast of a Central Mexican Figure

Mesoamerica, Mexica, Aztecs, Nahua, deity, cast/copy

The original figure was at the Württemberg-Neuenstadt Art Chamber (today part of the Württemberg State Museum) and then given to the Stuttgart Museum of Ethnology (today's Linden Museum) between 1716 and 1728. This replica was made in 1960 for the collection of the Seminar for Ethnology in Bonn (now the BASA Museum).

1960s

Mexico, Germany (Stuttgart)

297 x 123 mm

Gypsum, greenstone (rock) - plaster casting:
A silicon mold was made from the original and then liquid plaster was poured into the mold. The upper surfaces were painted.

Inventory number: 3400

Project: SciCoMove - Scientific Collections on the Move: Provincial Museums, Archives and Collecting Practices (1800-1950).
Funding: This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101007579.
The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the SciCoMove consortium and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union.

„Copy of a Central Mexican Figure,” SciCoMove, zuletzt aufgerufen am 11. Mai 2025, https://ausstellungen.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/scicomove/items/show/8.