San Francisco (MH708v)

San Francisco (MH708v)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description:

This black-line drawing of the simplex glyph for the personal name San Francisco (“St. Francis”) is attested here as a the name of a male saint. The glyph shows kneeling male figure in a three-quarters view and his head in profile, facing right. In this portrait, the man wears the classic robes and cord of St. Francis. This is St. Francis of the Catholic Church, and a church (probably the local church in the indigenous community of San Francisco Tianquiztenco in what is now the state of Puebla) appears behind him. He is barefooted. The top of his head is bald with the exception of a fringe, and a golden halo rings his head. He has both hands raised. The left hand emphasizes two fingers, the index finger and middle finger.

Description, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis:

This beautifully executed art on the front page of the tax rolls for San Francisco Tianquiztenco really stands out, featuring the patron saint of the community. The devotion to this figure suggests a strong Indigenous Christianity. This figure seems to serve as a glyph that identifies the patron of the local church. But other approaches to saints’ glyphs appear below.

Added Analysis, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image:

Source Manuscript:

Huexotzinco, Matrícula de (MH)

Date of Manuscript:

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage):

Huejotzingo, Puebla

Semantic Categories:

personal name

Syntax:

noun(s)

Cultural Content & Iconography:

Anatomy, human body parts

Gender (male)

Gestures with hands

Names (personal and/or theonym)

Religion (Indigenous Christianity)

Cultural Content, Credit:

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors:

Shapes and Perspectives:

shading and parallel line hatching

Keywords:

catolicismo, religión indígena, santos, franciscanos, nombres de santos, nombres de hombres

Glyph or Iconographic Image:

Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s):

san, saint, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/san
Francisco, Francis, a name, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/francisco

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation:

San Francisco

Spanish Translation, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Image Source:

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 708v, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=495&st=image.

Image Source, Rights:

This manuscript is hosted by the Library of Congress and the World Digital Library; used here with the Creative Commons, “Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License” (CC-BY-NC-SAq 3.0).

Historical Contextualizing Image: