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THE EMPERORS' CLOAK: AZTEC POMP, TOLTEC CIRCUMSTANCES
Patricia Rieff Anawalt
The officialcape of the Aztec emperorscharacteristicallyis picturedwith a blue, geometricdesign.A pictorial
codex illustratestributetextiles incorporatinga portion of that same pattern. These sixteenth-centuryAztec
weavingscamefrom geographicareaspreviouslypart of the twelfth-centuryToltecempire;it isfrom that revered
powerthat this motifderived.The imperialblue cloak of theAztec rulersthusservedas their "charter," reflecting
the empire'slegitimacybased on the emperors'claim to a Toltecgenealogy. The design'sNahuatl name plus
recentdyeingexperimentsindicatethe creationof the emperors'cloak involvedthe deliberateinclusionof a laborintensivetie-dye techniquein orderto producea specificmotif that carrieda powerfulsymbolism. This design's
occurrencein other contexts confirmsits importanceand indicatesthe motif had pre-Toltecorigins relatingto
geopolitical/mythologicalbases of authorityin ancient mesoamericansocieties.
La capa oficialde los emperadoresAztecasse caracterizaen sus representaciones
por un disenoazul geometrico.
Un c6dicepictoral ensena textiles de tributoque incorporaun porci6n de la misma decoraci6n.Estos tejidos
Aztecasdel siglo XVI vienende dreasgeogrdficasqueformabanpartedel imperioToltecadel siglo XII; talpoderfo
reveradoes la fuente del diseno. La capa azul imperialde los gobernantesAztecas servi6 entoncescomo una
"cedula"que reflejala legitimidaddel imperiobasadoen la relaci6ngene6logode los emperadoresa los Toltecas.
El nombredel diseno en Nahuatl e experimentosrecienhechosde procesosde tenir indica que el elaboraci6nde
la capa imperial incluye, a proposito,una tecnica laboriosodel tiniamentoanudado (plangi)para producirel
motivoespecificoque contieneun simbolismopoderoso.La ocurrenciade este disenoen otroscontenidosconfirma
su importanciae indica que el motivotiene origenespre-Toltecascon relaci6na basesgeopolftico/mitologicode
autoridaden sociedadesdel antiguoMesoamerica.
The ceremony and grandeur surrounding the court of the Aztec emperor Moctezuma encompassed
a degree of elaboration unrivaled in Europe (Cortes 1971:109, 111-112). One of the most impressive
visual aspects of palace life was the apparel of the nobles. Spanish conquistadors, missionary
chroniclers, and pictorial manuscripts all attest to the lords' finely woven, brilliantly colored costumes
and accoutrements, many lavish with intricate designs and lush ornamentation of shimmering
tropical feathers, gems, and precious metals. Appropriately, the clothing donned by the emperor is
reported to have been the most impressive of all. Yet in illustrations of the Aztec official royal attire
the cape that is always worn is not imposing.
The imperial cloak repeatedly depicted on sequential emperors-the garment whose very presence
denotes a ruler-is decorated with a seemingly unexceptional geometric pattern. This motif, however,
proves to have served an important, fundamental purpose. A detailed investigation of the design
reveals the iconographic influence of earlier mesoamerican polities and the tenacity of their ancient
symbols.
When contemplating repeated depictions of the Aztec emperors' cloak, many questions arise:
What does the cape's simple but potent design represent? Where did this motif originate and through
what technological process was it created? It is possible to answer these questions despite the fact
that no actual examples of the rulers' cape are still extant; Mesoamerica's humid climate and
PatriciaRieffAnawalt,Centerforthe Studyof RegionalDress,FowlerMuseumof CulturalHistory,University
of California,Los Angeles, CA 90024
AmericanAntiquity, 55(2), 1990, pp. 291-307.
CopyrightC) 1990 by the Society for AmericanArchaeology
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(de Sahagun 1950-1982:l:Plate 41, 1979:1:Folio 39v). Fortunately the friar provides the name of
the design on Yacatecuhtli's cloak: xiuhtlalpilli (de Sahagun 1950-1982:1:44).
In another context, when discussing the apparel of the twelfth-century Toltecs, de Sahagun relates,
"[The Toltecs'] clothing was-indeed their privilege was-the blue knotted cape [xiuhtlalpilli]" (de
Sahagiin 1950-1982:10:169). This statement, together with the analysis of the tribute-textile ideograms discussed earlier, strongly supports the contention that the Aztec rulers' official cloak served
as their "charter," reflecting the empire's legitimacy based on the emperors' claim to a Toltec
genealogy.
THE TECHNOLOGICAL CLUES INHERENT IN THE DESIGN MOTIF'S NAME
A careful examination of the design motif on the emperors' cloak raised the question of how it
might be reproduced. The etymology of its Nahuatl name provided the technological information
needed to proceed.
Fray Alonso de Molina, in his 1572 Spanish and Nahuatl dictionary, defines xihuitl as blue-green
("turquesa") (de Molina 1977:159v), and tlalpilli as something tied, or knotted ("cosa atada, o
ahudada") (de Molina 1977:124v). With these definitions, Molina not only provides clues as to the
type of dye used to create the rulers' cape but, even more importantly, the manner in which it was
applied.
The Nahuatl term tlalpilli indicates a dyeing process that involves the tieing/knotting off of a
portion of cloth so that the resulting reserved section cannot absorb the dye. This resist-dye technique
is known commonly by its Indonesian name, plangi. De Sahagun makes repeated references to
tlalpilli-created designs. In the total corpus of his work, he provides over 400 textile-motif names,
most of which appear only once or twice. Designs created using the tlalpilli technique, however, are
referred to at least 33 times. In addition to the blue xiuhtlalpilli garments-worn only by deities
and rulers-there also are repeated references to clothing with quappachtlalpilli (tawny) and colotlalpilli (scorpion [a gray-orange?]) motifs (Anawalt 1988-1989).
The xihuitl (turquoise [i.e., blue-green]) element in the cloak's name implies the use of indigo, a
blue dye known to have been employed in Prehispanic Mesoamerica. It is referred to by de Sahaguin
(1950-1982:8:47-48, 10:91-92) and fragments of indigo-dyed cloth have been found archaeologically (Mastache de Escobar 1974). There are several symbolic implications to the choice of blue as
the color for the emperors' cloak. The word xihuitl, in addition to translating "precious turquoise
stone," can by extension also refer to other objects of great value. In addition, the term refers to
the hue blue-green, the quintessential Toltec color (de Sahaguin 1950-1982:10:169).
Returning to the problem of re-creating the blue diaper motif, it quickly became apparent that
what was needed first was a carefully detailed depiction of such a pattern. Most drawings of the
emperors' cloak are too highly stylized to be of help (see Figure 6), but Codex Ixtlilxochitl contains
an ideal example. The royal raiment of King Nezahualpilli,' ruler of Texcoco-one of the three
city-states that controlled the Aztec empire-proved an excellent model both for its clarity and
the arrangement of the small, repeated elements of the diaper motif into a revelatory pattern (Figure 7).
The repeating geometric design on Nezahualpilli's cape is formed by two interlocking step frets,
one composed of squares containing dots and the other of dot-encasing diamonds. Guided by the
Nahuatl name of the emperors' cloak, the initial attempt to re-create the pattern involved dyeing
cloth with indigo using the plangi tieing technique. The result was disconcerting.
Because of the propensity of woven cloth to stretch when pulled on the bias, it proved impossibleusing only the plangi method-to create both squares and diamonds in such close configuration.
No matter how the reserved sections were manipulated, only diamonds running along the warp and
weft of the material would emerge (Figure 8).
Still convinced that the term xiuhtlalpilli held the key to the technology used to create the rulers'
cape, I consulted two artists sophisticated in dyeing techniques: Virginia Davis of New York and
Pamela Scheinman of New Jersey.
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[Vol. 55, No. 2, 1990]
The custom of bestowing textiles as gifts was not limited to only the residents of the capital.
Visitors were similarly honored, and the weavings they received were both plentiful and of great
value. The Florentine Codex makes reference to such gifts as "costly capes" (de Sahaguin 19501982:8:52) and "capes without price" (de Sahagun 1950-1982:8:64-65). Particularly germane to
the concerns of this paper is de Sahagun's report that a newly installed ruler distributed bundles of
such weavings among visiting lords, presenting them with "the precious capes, appropriate to them,
the ones to which they were entitled" (de Sahaguin 1950-1982:4:88-89). Obviously, at least some
of the cloaks given as gifts were lineage and/or area specific.
Nor were all of the recipients of such textiles allies. De Sahaguin states that the emperor gave
appropriately decorated capes to "the lords from everywhere-friends of the ruler, and all the lords
unfriendly to him" (de Sahagun 1950-1982:8:44). Among the latter category of visiting dignitaries
are listed nobles from Tlaxcala, Cholula and Huexotzinco (de Sahagun 1950-1982:8:65). Although
each of these polities was a long-time adversary of the Mexica of Tenochtitlan, the lords from those
unfriendly areas were all Chichimec/Toltec descended. As a result, these wary guests would have
shared the high-born Aztecs' appreciation and privilege of wearing textiles bearing a section of the
blue diaper motif, heraldic emblem of royal Toltec descent.
The above investigation of the blue diaper motif demonstrates the power of a method of cultural
reconstruction based on depictions of Prehispanic weavings. This textile-focused approach is enriched by using evidence from several media produced by different artists of varying backgrounds.
From such a data base, new understanding of long-familiar images emerges. Perhaps even more
important, unexpected insights are gained into the functioning of ancient societies, the nature of
past political divisions, and the tenacious continuity of prestige symbols handed down from earlier
civilizations. In the case of the Aztec emperors' cloak, analysis of its decorative design provides
new understanding of the geopolitical/mythological bases of authority in ancient Mesoamerica.
Acknowledgments. Duringthis paper'sevolution, the followingcolleagues'assistanceand comments have
been most gratefullyreceived:ClemencyCoggins,GeorgeCowgill,ChristopherDonnan,AlanGrinnell,Wolfgang
Haberland,Norman Hammond,Doris Heyden, Eloise QuifionesKeber,WalterF. Morris,Jr., H. B. Nicholson,
0. J. Polaco R., and MarcThouvenot.Jean Sells drewthe maps. The initialplangi dyeingexperimentwas done
by Penny Olson, Art Department,University of California,Los Angeles. I am beholden to VirginiaDavis of
New York City and Pamela Scheinmanof HighlandPark,New Jersey,for their aid in re-creatingthe pattern
on King Nezahualpilli'scloak.
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NOTE
' For information on the technique used to create the border pattern on King Nezahualpilli's cloak see Johnson
1989.
Received July 16, 1989; accepted September 12, 1989