User:Jennavdg/sandbox

Article Evaluation

Relevant content? -- Yes, relevant and concise. Generally well written but information is not very extensive.

Distracting content? -- the way the goddess is presented in the article is a multifaceted goddess with many different attributes. The article does not attempt to rationalize that aspect or indicate whether this is typical of Aztec mythology. Article lacks a nexus among all of the different attributes and mythological narratives. (obsidian butterfly, clawed butterfly, bat, deer, eagle, infant mortality, creation of life, bats or black butterflies).

Up to date info? -- "Influence on Modern Culture" section could be expanded upon. This goddess has entered the realm of science (geological formations on venus) and modern names of butterflies. Could talk about influence on contemporary culture (feminine studies).

Neutrality? -- Information tries to touch on everything. Very broad and general scope. No bias.

Sources (reliability, neutral, attached to every fact)? -- All difficult aztec words or references are hyperlinked to a separate wikipedia article. All three sources are very broad in scope with no scholarly reference to this goddess in particular. There are articles (scholarly) out there that do reference this goddess in particular and should be used. The sources used deal with a broad scope and talk about all of the god/goddesses rather than narrowing in on just this goddess.

- The first footnote is not a scholarly reliable source (does not give any references, generic .com reference, no author listed, it is www.azteccalender.com -- a source from a .org or a .edu or a museum would have been much better and more reliable).

- The second footnote is from about.com agnosticism/atheism and is not a scholarly source nor is it reliable. No author listed. Although this source is about this goddess in particular, it is not scholarly. It is not possible to evaluate the validity of the claims (associated with birds and fire) in the article.

- The last sentence of the first paragraph states that her nahual was a deer, but has no source to back it up.

- The article show one image from the "Codex Borgia" that purports to be a representation of the goddess without any verification. The image that is shown in the article, taken from the Codex Borgia, derives from a codex of uncertain date and without any references as to who made the identification of the image.

- The third footnote references disconnected attributes of the goddess that are taken from a general illustrated dictionary.

- There is detailed references to various legendary narratives about the goddess in four sentences with no references cited (under "rituals" section).

- The sixth footnote is from a tweet. Claims "Orizaba in "Septer of Night" was inspired by the Aztec goddess Itzpapalotl". The only references under "Influences on Modern Culture" are based on a tweet and talk about a disney movie"

Notes on the Talkpage -- There are two suggestions: one suggests explaining why she is associated with paradise if she is "fearsome." The other suggests exploring the idea of dualism in mythology.

Rated/Wikiprojects? -- This article is part of four WikiProjects. Three of which are rated C-class, low importance. One is rated Start-class, low importance.

Aztec Chacmool, draft

During the excavation of of the 1390 Templo Mayor, the only fully polychrome chacmool to be found at that site was in its original context on the top level of the Tlaloc side (the side dedicated to the rain god) of the temple. Because this chacmool statue sat in the same position as the sacrificial stone on the Huitzilopochtli side of the temple, "historical interpretations" are confirmed in the idea that this sculpture acted as a divine messenger, a link between the temple priest(s) and the god (in this case the rain god Tlaloc).

The color that remained upon this chacmool sculpture was crucial for the iconographic identification of the figure, as it does not contain any iconography or symbols associated with the rain god Tlaloc (the god with which this sculpture is associated at the Templo Mayor). Upon this Aztec sculptures discovery, a color reconstruction was created as a result of the work involving a series of steps: the production of a line drawing of the statue, a diligent cleaning of the colored surfaces of the statue, and the establishment of spatial recognition by means of the use of "stereoscopic magnifying glasses and ultraviolet light." Scholars determined that the Aztec chacmool discovered at the Templo Mayor did in fact contain representations of the rain god (Tlaloc) by recognizing similarities between "the circular gold pectoral medallion, the color combination on the petticoat . . . the black skin, the red hands and feet, and the white headdress and bangles," all of which suggest similar stylistic and iconographic progression among earlier and later Mexica chacmool sculptures.

A second chacmool discovery from the Templo Mayor and dating to a later period displays iconographic features which are distinct form the larger corpus of other figures but consistent with other sculptures found in the same context at the Templo Mayor. The other representations baring the distinct iconography include Tlaloc ritual vessels and bench reliefs. One of the distinct iconographic features is the representation of the eyes. Whereas Tlaloc's eyes are generally represented with a round goggle-like frame, the later chacmool, the vessels, and the bench relief feature a rectangular eye frame within which almond eyes are engraved. All three sculptures also include large fangs at the corners of the god's mouth. The ornaments worn by the later chacmool and depicted in the vessels and the bench relief of the Templo Mayor are also distinct rather than the characteristic earspools with a square plug and central dangal. These examples sport oversized circular spools. All three examples are also adorned with a multistrand, beaded collar in which one strand has larger beads that have been interpreted as hanging bells. The chacmool holds onto a cuauhxicalli vessel that also is engraved with the face of the god with the same rectangular eye and mouth features.

References in Contemporary Art and Literature

In Henry Moore's early examples of monumental reclining figures, the artist relied on the cast of a chacmool sculpture he saw in Paris. Commenting on the major impact chacmool sculpted figures had on his early career, Moore stated that "Its stillness and alertness, a sense of readiness - and the whole presence of it, and the legs coming down like columns" were characteristics that inspired his creations.

Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, "Reclining Figure" by Henry Moore. This is just on of many examples of Henry Moore's monumental "Reclining Figure" works.