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The feathered serpent god and the equinox

By Google Arts & Culture

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The Feathered Serpent appears in several traditions and myths of ancient Mesoamerica. 

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Known to the Maya as Kukulkan, meaning ‘plumed serpent’, 

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this deity is closely associated with a similar figure known as Qʼuqʼumatz to the Kʼicheʼ people and with Quetzalcoatl of Aztec mythology.

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There are many images of Kukulkan at Chichen Itza, the famous stone pyramid built by the Maya.

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On the equinox, when the day and night are almost the exact same length, 

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a shadow that looks like a serpent descending down the steps is cast at Chichen Itza, thanks to the angle of the sun against the carvings.

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Mesoamerica Symbolia chichen itza

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