tzatzacua (FCbk12f21r)

This is a black and white sketch of an effort to block (tzatzacua) roads as the armed and armored Spanish invasionary party advanced. The hope was to divert the invaders to Tetzcoco. This iconographic example is included in this digital collection for the purpose of making comparisons with related hieroglyphs. The term selected for this example comes from the text on the page preceding the image in the Digital Florentine Codex. There is no gloss, per se. The contextualizing image shows that this action was ordered by Motecuhzoma. The detail captures how a Nahua man wearing only a loincloth and holding a digging tool (surely a huictli) had planted at least seven agave (metl, or maguey in Spanish and English) plants very quickly across the route where the Spanish were advancing toward the capital city on horseback. The prickly maguey plants (metl) each have five branches (pencas in Spanish), and many have visible roots. They appear in a landscape setting with three-dimensional shading, features learned from colonial art instructors. In the invasionary party, one horse’s leg is lifted, showing motion or momentum. One of the Spaniards also points forward, perhaps in determination to advance. The effort to block the advance was not successful.