The Bilimek Pulque Vessel
Starlore, Calendrics, and Cosmology of Late Postclassic Central Mexico
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6033362 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Karl A Taube, Karl Taube (0000-0001-6503-2343, University of California, Riverside, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1993 |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1-15 |
| Publication date | 1993-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Ancient Mesoamerica (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0956-5361 • E-ISSN: 1469-1787 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0956536100000742 |
| OpenAlex | W2068099580 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 7 |
| References cited | 11 |
The Bilimek Vessel is among the most remarkable pieces of portable Aztec sculpture, and it contains an unusually complex body of imagery concerning starlore and cosmic battle. The Bilimek Vessel and other Aztec sources reveal that the alcoholic beverage pulque was well integrated into Aztec concepts of warfare and mythology. To the Aztec, pulque was identified with the souls of dead warriors and the starry night sky. The many figures appearing on the Bilimek Vessel represent star beings attacking the sun. At least three and probably four of the depicted deities are identical to the sky bearers appearing in the year-bearer pages of theCodex Borgia(see Seler 1963) andCodex Vaticanus B(see Seler 1902–1903). It is noted that much of the iconography and calendrics appearing on the Bilimek Vessel concerns the completion of the 52-year cycle and the New Fire ceremony, an event that symbolized the cosmic battle between the sun and the fearsometzitzimimestar demons of darkness
Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Art history · Battle · Ceremony · Geography · Iconography · Literature · Meteorology · Mythology · Sky · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Natural History · History · Latin American history and culture
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Decapitated Lunar Goddesses in Aztec Art, Myth, and Ritual
Sacred Geography in the Nochixtlan Valley
Vasijas rituales para pulque
Bruno Latour no jardim da ilustração arqueológica
Vessels for Ceremony
| Unique citing works | 7 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,24 |
| Citation span | 1997 - 2025 (29) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |