xochipapalotl (FCbk11f101r)

This iconographic example, featuring a varicolored butterfly (xochipapalotl), 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 near the image in the Digital Florentine Codex. There is no gloss, per se. This example shows a nearly white butterfly with red and yellow accents. The text says it is much sought-after, comes in small and large sizes, and has many colors, like flowers. Below the butterfly are two red flowers with green stems and leaves. The flowers (xochitl) here are a phonetic indicator that the name of the butterfly starts with xochi-. The contextualizing image shows how this compound is set in a landscape, which reveals European artistic influence. While this is not a traditional compound hieroglyph, it is a late expression of that type of writing.