This image depicts a pre-Cuauhtemoc* Mexica (Aztec) warrior donning a headdress of pheasant feathers and large turquoise earrings in gauged ears. He also has a turquoise ornament pierced under his lip as well as traditional body paint.
Turquoise is considered to be sacred by many Native American peoples, and the Mexica people valued it more than gold and emeralds. What's significant here is the reconnection that contemporary Chicanas and Chicanos who practice traditional Aztec dance are experiencing with their ancestral indigenous roots, not only by practicing Danza Azteca, but also by reviving indigenous forms of body art. In this way, the are reclaiming their bodies, minds, and spirits.
It is believed that our ancestors pierced, gauged, and adorned their ears, noses, and lips in order to sharpen their senses and become more attentive and aware of what they see, hear, smell, taste and touch.
*The term "pre-Cuauhtemoc" is used rather than the terms "pre-Columbian" or "pre-Hispanic" to redirect the historical perspective from a European one to an Indigenous one. "Cuauhtemoc" was the last Tlahtoani (Spokesperson/leader) of the Mexica people at the time of the Spanish "Conquest".
Turquoise is considered to be sacred by many Native American peoples, and the Mexica people valued it more than gold and emeralds. What's significant here is the reconnection that contemporary Chicanas and Chicanos who practice traditional Aztec dance are experiencing with their ancestral indigenous roots, not only by practicing Danza Azteca, but also by reviving indigenous forms of body art. In this way, the are reclaiming their bodies, minds, and spirits.
It is believed that our ancestors pierced, gauged, and adorned their ears, noses, and lips in order to sharpen their senses and become more attentive and aware of what they see, hear, smell, taste and touch.
*The term "pre-Cuauhtemoc" is used rather than the terms "pre-Columbian" or "pre-Hispanic" to redirect the historical perspective from a European one to an Indigenous one. "Cuauhtemoc" was the last Tlahtoani (Spokesperson/leader) of the Mexica people at the time of the Spanish "Conquest".