Information on the clothing of the Teotihuacan culture is quite scarce. This Mesoamerican civilization has always been steeped in mystery and experts still debate its founders and their sudden decline. The details of their language and ethnic disposition are unknown.
The city Teotihuacán was a prosperous city between the 1st century BC until the s. XI AD and is located 40 kilometers from the Mexican capital. It was an important religious and commercial center in the region. Different cultures converged in it and it could be said that it was a multi-ethnic state. In addition, they had a very marked social stratification.
Its main characteristic are the imposing buildings and temples. The pyramids of the sun and the moon and the temple of Quetzalcóatl stand out.
This dedication to ritual themes and matters, suggested that Teotihuacan society was oriented towards its religious leaders. It was imagined as a ceremonial complex and place of pilgrimage. The very name of Teotihuacán means in Nahuatl “where the gods were born”.
Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, in his General History of the Things of New Spain, thus collects the legend of the founding of the city:
However, recent research has discovered through murals and sculptures, a military framework that seems strongly entrenched in the daily life of the city and that made fundamental political decisions such as invasions and wars.
This militaristic escalation would partly explain the sudden abandonment of the city. It can only be inferred that there was a catastrophic event that caused the inhabitants to flee, such as some war or the eruption of a volcano.
It could also have been after the gradual depletion of the area's natural resources and overpopulation.
There is still no conclusive answer to these mysteries. However, the evidence can give us certain indications about what this culture was like and especially what its clothing was like.
The clothing of the Teotihuacan culture
Thanks to the Teotihuacan mural painting, the first clues are obtained about how the men of this culture dressed. These murals have appeared in different excavations and are an important source of information about the people and environment of those who made them.
Like all Mesoamerican societies, Teotihuacan society was highly stratified and marked differences in social position through clothing and ornamentation.
materials
The main material to make the clothes of the Teotihuacanos was the fibers that they extracted from the maguey or agave.
They came to use rudimentary looms and were able to experiment with other raw materials such as cotton, henequen and rabbit hair. This predilection for organic and biodegradable materials explains why there is no trace of the ways of dressing of the time.
The polychromy was fundamental in the elaboration of the clothes and they dyed the threads with natural colorants and adorned them with multicolored feathers that they combined to make capes, tunics, fans and even shields.
Lower class men
The men of the lower classes used the máxtlatl or loincloth, which was used to cover the genitals and a tangle, which was a cloth that was tied around the waist to cover the buttocks. They were barefoot and bare-chested.
The women wore the traditional huipil with geometric ornaments, a skirt and sandals or huaraches.
Priests
In the case of priests, shirts or xicolli, ornate capes or tilmatli and male skirts or cueitl were added. All this adorned with large headdresses of feathers and other materials or leather helmets.
Military
The military castes, as observed in the codices and murals, could be dressed in animal skins and wear a mask that imitated the aggressive features of the jaguar, eagle or coyote.
You can also see whole costumes or tlahuiztli that were colored with designs and were accompanied by cone-shaped hats.
A fundamental element for military clothing was the mirror disk, which consisted of a polished black stone that was tied at the back and that feathers could be added around the circumference. This piece could be used as a shield.
An accessory that draws a lot of the attention of these warriors are the "serpentine blinders of Tlaloc". They consisted of circular structures that surrounded the eyes like modern glasses. Other accessories used were bracelets, earmuffs and adorned huaraches.
To make the appearance much more fearsome, the warriors filed their teeth, pierced the lobe and nasal septum, and shaved their heads.
This detailed inventory of military clothing that can be seen in the Teotihuacán murals is a clear example of the importance of the warrior elite for society.
While it is true that the city was founded as a sacred city, its rulers chose to establish themselves as warlords who subdued, invaded and conquered other territories and fiercely defended their lands.
This evolution not only affected the Teotihuacan culture. Other Mesoamerican civilizations also suffered that warlike escalation that meant the change from a religious society to a martial one.
References
- Ehecatl Quetzalcoatl (2013). "Pre-Hispanic male clothing". Retrieved on June 2, 2017 at 4nahui.blogspot.mx.
- Ehecatl Quetzalcoatl (2013). "Ancient and Current Female Clothing". Retrieved on June 2, 2017 at 4nahui.blogspot.mx.
- Florescano, Enrique (2009). "New image of the Teotihuacan State". Retrieved on June 3, 2017 in revistadelauniversidad.unam.mx.
- Tempo Ameríndio (2013). "Teotihuacan Warfare - 300 - 700 AD". Retrieved June 3, 2017 at ancientamerindia.wordpress.com.
- Teotihuacán (2011). "Society". Retrieved on June 3, 2017 at culturateotihuacan.wordpress.com.