The Winged Elder

myminifactory

This stela was unearthed between 2008 and 2009. The elderly man grasps a crosier, mirroring the Mexican depictions of Quetzalcoatl, with a serpent and a likely calendar inscription positioned in front of him. Draw attention to the butterfly wing emblazoned on his back. In Nahua philosophy, the butterfly is associated with the fire-war nexus, as warriors who fell in combat reached the House of the Sun before returning to earth transformed into butterflies. However, fire is also tied to humanity's civilizing process. Consequently, it is plausible that this scene alludes to the coronation of a primal dignitary from Tula, whose date commemorated the event. This interpretation gains credence because the elderly man wields a crosier similar to Quetzalcoatl's, mythic leader of the Toltecs, who symbolically sanctioned the ascension to power of their ruler.