ichtecqui (Mdz70r)

ichtecqui (Mdz70r)
Iconography

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description:

This example of iconography shows a scene where a man is in the act of stealing something from a rectangular, lidded box made from woven reeds. The man wears a (probably white cotton) cape tied at his shoulder, and a white loincloth. The cape has light purple or gray shading with the intention of suggesting three-dimensionality. The thief's skin is a tan color. He is standing in profile, facing toward the viewer's right. His body suggests motion. The gloss informs the viewer that thief (ichtecqui, thief, or ladrón in Spanish), is the intended reading, but the same scene could be used for the verb ichtequi, to steal. It is unclear what is in the box. One thing could be a piece of white cloth with a border. There are two more items that are olive green with red dots on the ends, possibly beads.

Description, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis:

Research by Molly Harbour Bassett and Jeanette Peterson has led Molly to share the following (personal communication, 16 December 2024): "Based on the attached image from Florentine Codex Book 4, fol. 60v, and related text on 59r, the box likely contains a cloth and greenstone beads on a red thread. Petlacalli probably contained other kinds of valuables and heirlooms, so the cloth and greenstone beads may represent diverse goods." See the Florentine Codex image, below. And see this group of images of the petlacalli from the Digital Florentine Codex: https://florentinecodex.getty.edu/search?term=petlacalli&view=image. An image of a red string (or perhaps a leather thong) with green beads (probably chalchihuitl) appears below for the purpose of comparison, as do various pieces of cloth that have borders. Cloth--being handwoven--was a valuable commodity and extracted from communities in the form of tribute. See, for example, a detail from our Mapas Project.

Added Analysis, Credit:

Stephanie Wood, with input from Molly Bassett and Jeanette Peterson

Gloss Image:

Gloss Diplomatic Transcription:

ladron

Gloss Normalization:

ladrón

Gloss Analysis, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript:

Mendoza/Mendocino, Codex (Mdz)

Date of Manuscript:

c. 1541, or by 1553 at the latest

Creator's Location (and place coverage):

Mexico City

Cultural Content & Iconography:

Movement

Textiles, Clothing, Hats, Regalia

Colors:

Shapes and Perspectives:

rectangular

shading and parallel line hatching

three-dimensionality

woven

Keywords:

ladrones, robar, cajas de petate, hombres

Museum & Rare Book Comparisons:

Museum/Rare Book Notes:

Image shared by Molly Harbout Bassett, 16 December 2024.

Glyph or Iconographic Image:

Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s):

ichtecqui, a thief, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/ichtecqui

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation:

el ladrón

Spanish Translation, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Image Source:

Codex Mendoza, folio 70 recto, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/2fea788e-2aa2-4f08-b6d9-648c00..., image 150 of 188.

Image Source, Rights:

Original manuscript is held by the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS. Arch. Selden. A. 1; used here with the UK Creative Commons, “Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License” (CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0)