cohuatequitl (Osu37v)

This painted simplex Nahuatl hieroglyph represents the noun for rotary draft labor, cohuatequitl. In this collection, this same item can stand for tequitl (work), not far off from coatequitl. It is actually an agricultural digging stick called a huictli. The implication is that the most common rotary draft labor was farm work. This tool appears horizontally, which is unusual, because it typically appears vertical, which was the normal posture for digging. It has a wider end with a sharp point that would facilitate the penetration of the ground. In the middle of this wider part of the tool there is a symbol shaped like a backwards and sideways letter S. The tool is a light brown or tan color, suggesting that it is made of wood. The contextualizing image shows tomín coins amounting to a peso and a half, which represented a compensation for the cohuatequitl work being discussed--not necessarily the norm.