Xiuhtli (MH649r)
This black-line drawing with some added color is the compound glyph for the personal name Xiuhtli ("Comet"), attested here as a man's name. This comet has a central arrow pointing downward. The arrow has a red arrowhead with a point. On either side of this central shaft are two additional long strips, joined at the top of the central shaft. At the lower end of the strips are two small squares, tesserae for creating turquoise (xihuitl) mosaics. These are phonetic complements, given that xiuhtli and xihuitl are near homophones.
Stephanie Wood
This popular name, Xiuhtli, is linked to the religious calendar of years, because it was a name given to boys born during the time of the binding ceremony at the end of every fifty-two year cycle. The stem (xiuh-) for both xiuhtli (comet) and xihuitl (year, turquoise, etc.) is the same.
Comparing this glyph with other glyphs for Xiuhtli, it combines familiar elements, such as turquoise–xihuitl–tesserae, but also contributes something new with the descending arrow. The red (bloody?) point of the arrow, in fact, draws attention to that detail. While some comets appear to ascend, this one seems to descend.
Stephanie Wood
peo xiuhtli
Pedro Xiuhtli
Stephanie Wood
1560
Jeff Haskett-Wood
cometas, estrellas, flechas, rojo, teselas, mosáicos, turquesa, nombres de hombres
xiuh(tli), a comet, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/xiuhtli
Cometa
Stephanie Wood
Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 649r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=380&st=image
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).