oztotl (FCbk10f121r)

This iconographic example, featuring a cave (oztotl), 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 mountain or hill (tepetl) with a cave (oztotl), and a man is lying horizontal in the cave, visible at the mouth of the cave. The man has long hair and seems to wear a cape made from an animal hide. It is tied at his neck. The cape is painted with some shading, a European artistic influence. The surrounding landscape also shows European artistic traditions have been adopted by Nahua artists.The mountain has a lot of three-dimensionality, but the emphasis is still on curvy stones (tetl), and the overall shape is still rather bell-like. The nearby text explains that the tlaminque (“shooters” who use bows and arrows) will sometimes sleep in a cave when they are on the go. The Nahuas remember cave-dwelling as a part of their origins, such as the famous migration stop at Chicomoztoc (“Seven Caves”).