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days, during which the Sun passes the zenith at 
Mexico. 
No. 10. An allegory, which reminds us of 
the purifications of India. A divinity, whose 
enormous nose is decorated with the figure of 
the two headed snake, or mysterious amphisbsena, 
carries in his hand a xlqmpilli^ or a purse of 
incense: we see on his back a broken vase, 
from which issues a serpent ; another serpent, 
bleeding, and cut in pieces, is before him; a 
third serpent, equally mangled, is contained in 
a chest full of water, from which rises a plant. 
We discover on the right a man placed in a 
vase ; on the left a woman adorned with flowers, 
probably the voluptuous Tlamezquimilli, who 
is represented also with a bandage on her eyes. 
In the same page we find an agave, which, 
when cut, yields blood. Does this allegory 
allude to the serpent that poisons the water, 
the source of all organic life to the victory 
of Crishna over the dragon Kaliya, to the seduc- 
tion and purification by fire ? It is evident, that 
the figure of the serpent in the Mexican paint- 
ings represents two diflferent ideas. In the re- 
liefs which indicate the divisions of the year 
and of the cycles, this figure expresses only 
time, cevum. The serpent represented in com- 
pany with the mother 6f men (Cihuacohuatl), 
* Paulliniis de S. Bartholomgeo, Codices Avenses, p. 235. 
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