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This dancing monkey with a prominent belly (the popular name for this piece is "the Pregnant Monkey") is one of the well-known evocations of Quetzalcóatl as Ehécatl, the wind deity. The strange, beaklike mouthpiece is the implement with which Ehécatl created wind, and it is one of his diagnostic features.




Sculpture of the wind deity
Mexica (Aztec)
Late Post-Classic (1325-1521 A.D.)
Mexico City
Stone with traces of red, white and blue pigments
60 x 37 cm.
National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico.

Photo © Jorge Pérez de Lara