petlatl (Mdz20r)

petlatl (Mdz20r)
Element from a Compound

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This element of a handwoven, reed mat (petlatl) has been carved from the compound sign for the place name, Tepechpan. The petlatl plays a role in conveying that the stone foundation (tepechtli) is also a flooring (pechtli), where people lay out mats (petlatl) for resting and sleeping. This small piece of a mat comprises a black-line drawing (with a typical herringbone pattern) painted yellow.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

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: 
Plants, Flora
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Colors: 
yellow or golden
Shapes and Perspectives: 
horizontal
rectangular
woven
Keywords: 

woven mats, petates, esteras, blandos de espadañas

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

petla(tl), a handwoven reed mat, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/petlatl

Additional Scholars' Interpretations: 

mat

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

el petate

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Codex Mendoza, folio 20 rectoo, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/2fea788e-2aa2-4f08-b6d9-648c00..., image 50 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: 

Tepechpan (Mdz20r)