cueyatl (TK216r)

This painted simplex Nahuatl hieroglyph represents a frog (cueyatl). ThisNahuatl term is not given as a gloss, nor is it mentioned in the text, but the visual support the interpretation. Also, Marc Thouvenot came up with the same reading of the full scene in the contextualizing image, which he describes in full as, “tlamamalli tilmatli ic michin ihuan cueyatl” (a bundle of cloaks with fish and frog). [See his TLACHIA digital collection, https://tlachia.iib.unam.mx/tepetlaoztoc/K14_A.] This frog is shown in profile, facing left. It is tied to a string. As the contextualizing image shows, the cord is linked to a fish that is also on a string (and only this fish is mentioned in the Spanish text). Perhaps the fish and the frog were caught with some kind of fishing line and then kept on that line. The frog has spots and its back is a light blue or green. It was part of the goods required that the pueblo provide to a factor (Spanish mercantile agent). The town was protesting the abusive quantities of tribute such as this.

Side Note: The folio numbers are not always clear in the copy published online by the British Museum. Marc Thouvenot gives this page the number K15_A in his TLACHIA digital collection, https://tlachia.iib.unam.mx/tepetlaoztoc/K15_A.