Tepetlacalli con mazorcas

It is likely that inside this stone box carved with 16 corncobs, the Mexicas deposited an offering dedicated to the agricultural deities. The corn, represented with great beauty, was the principal food in Mesoamerica and protagonist of several myths and stories. There is a similar piece in a museum in Berlin; however, it is in fragments and the bottom part has the glyph “7 serpent”, calendar name of the goddess of the corn, Chicomecóatl in Náhuatl. The front side is indicated by the hairs of the ears that bend towards the center of the box. This piece belonged to the silversmith and North American collector William Spratling who sold it to the museum in 1964.Arqlga. Bertina Olmedo Vera