Feathered serpent

WHS containing a structure dedicated/related to the Feathered Serpent deity in one of its Mesoamerican cultural manifestations.

"The Feathered Serpent was a prominent supernatural entity or deity, found in many Mesoamerican religions. It was called Quetzalcoatl among the Aztecs, Kukulka among the Yucatec Maya, and Q'uq'umatz and Tohil among the K'iche' Maya. The double symbolism used in its name is considered allegoric to the dual nature of the deity, where being feathered represents its divine nature or ability to fly to reach the skies and being a serpent represents its human nature or ability to creep on the ground among other animals of the Earth, a dualism very common in Mesoamerican deities" (Wiki) The deity first emerges in the Olmec culture c1400- 400 BCE. For a history of its spread from Teotihuacan to the Maya see http://www.anthro.illinois.edu/faculty/lucero/documents/12-LuceroPanganiban.pdf

Religion and Belief

Connected Sites

Site Rationale Link
Chichen-Itza " El Castillo served as a temple to the god Kukulcan, the Yucatec Maya Feathered Serpent deity closely related to the god Quetzalcoatl known to the Aztecs and other central Mexican cultures of the Post Classic Period .......The pyramid consists of a series of square terraces with stairways up each of the four sides to the temple on top. Sculptures of plumed serpents run down the sides of the northern balustrade. During the spring and autumn, the late afternoon sun strikes off the northwest corner of the pyramid and casts a series of triangular shadows against the northwest balustrade, creating the illusion of a feathered serpent "crawling" down the pyramid" (Wiki) See
Mexico City and Xochimilco "The Temple of Quetzalcoatl was located to the west of the Templo Mayor. It is said that during the equinox, the sun rose between the shrines dedicated to Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc and shone directly on this temple. Due to the god's serpentine nature, the temple had a circular base instead of a rectangular one" (Wiki- Templo Mayor) See
Teotihuacan Temple of the Feathered Serpent
Xochicalco Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent

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A connection should:

  1. Not be "self evident"
  2. Link at least 3 different sites
  3. Not duplicate or merely subdivide the "Category" assignment already identified on this site.
  4. Add some knowledge or insight (whether significant or trivial!) about WHS for the users of this site
  5. Be explained, with reference to a source