itztli (Mdz48r)

itztli (Mdz48r)
Element from a Compound

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This element of an obsidian blade (itztli) has been carved from the compound sign for the place name, Itzteyocan (see below). It has a somewhat unusual block of obsidian that is topped with a piece that is much thinner and curves to the right.

Source Manuscript: 
Mendoza/Mendocino, Codex (Mdz)
Date of Manuscript: 

c. 1541, but by 1553 at the latest

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Mexico City

Syntax: 
noun(s)
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Religion (Indigenous)
Stones, Rocks, Lapidary, Masonry
War or Conflict
Museum & Rare Book Comparisons: 
Museum/Rare Book Notes: 

A photo by Simon Burchell (marked as Creative Commons) shows unworked obsidian blocks with thin, sharp, curving blades behind them.

Glyph or Iconographic Image: 
Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s): 

itz(tli), a sharp-bladed instrument of obsidian, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/itztli

Additional Scholars' Interpretations: 

obsidian blade

Image Source: 

Codex Mendoza, folio 48 recto, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/2fea788e-2aa2-4f08-b6d9-648c00..., image 106 of 188.

Image Source, Rights: 

The Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, hold the original manuscript, the MS. Arch. Selden. A. 1. This image is published here under the UK Creative Commons, “Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License” (CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0).

See Also: 

Itzteyocan (Mdz48r)

itztli (Mdz17v)