ocholli (FCbk9f49v)

This iconographic example, featuring two maize ears tied together (ocholli), 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 two husked ears of corn, tied at the top. The contextualizing image shows a woman making this offering to the divine or sacred force of Xipe Totec. This was a time in the religious holiday when human skins from sacrificial victims were removed and thrown in a cave. Totec stands near the woman; he is an unusually large, nude figure, perhaps representing the ixiptlatl who would have already discarded the outer skin (a type of regeneration). With the term ocholli, the emphasis is on the bunch, and it can apply to different kinds of food. The cobs here (two of them) have their kernels exposed. Whether these are fresh/green (xilotl), ready to eat (elotl), or dried (olotl, whether the cob is full or empty, or as a counting term for individual kernels) is difficult to say.