Cleveland Museum of Art

Pectoral Ornament

Date

c. 1200–1519

Medium

gold, jadeite

Culture

Mexico, Guerrero, Ichcatiopan, Mixtec or Aztec style

Department

Art of the Americas

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This extraordinary pendant consists of a conch shell section carved in jade, enclosed in a delicate gold frame with tiny dangling bells. This symbol was worn by the deity Quetzalcoatl (Feathered Serpent), a culture hero credited in one myth with creating human life by sprinkling his blood on ground bones. The pectoral may have been worn by a priest, or by a ceremonial impersonator of Quetzalcoatl.

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