This representation of an evil sorcerer comes from the Codex Laud, one of a handful of manuscripts predating the Spanish invasion that survived the mass incineration of Mesoamerican codices by Christian friars.
The generic name to refer to evil sorcerers was tlacatecolotl, or “owl-man.” Owls were believed to come from the underworld and announced death and bad fortunes to the living. A tlacatecolotl was capable of inflicting sickness, death, and bad fortunes onto their victims. Harbingers of disease, they were considered sad, poor people, unable to find peace or have a home, who made their miserable living out of contracts to hurt others. Those who captured a tlacatecolotl cut the hairs in the crown of the sorcerer’s head, as this was believed to put an end to his magical powers and lead to his death shortly after.
A tlacatecolotl was just one of dozens of sorcerer kinds inhabiting the Nahua world. Unlike owl-men, most sorcerers used their diverse magical abilities to benefit society: some diagnosed illnesses, others cured the sick, some knew the occult and the future, others located lost people and things, some had supernatural personalities, while others could control meteorites.
Image Source
- Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Laud Misc. 678, plate 5. Courtesy of the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford (CC-BY-NC 4.0), © Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford.
Further Reading
- López Austin, Alfredo. “Cuarenta clases de magos del mundo náhuatl.” Estudios de cultura Náhuatl 7 (1967): 87–117.
- Morales Olvera, Carlos Aarón. “Entre la vida y la muerte IV.” Crónicas y fuentes de origen indigena de Siglo XVI Novohispano (blog). Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Acatlán, August 17, 2016. http://blogs.acatlan.unam.mx/scronicas/tag/tlacatecolotl/.
- Noguez, Xavier. “Códice Laud.” Arqueología Mexicana, special issue, 31 (2009): 30–33.
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