Lord Eight Deer Jaguar Claw (right) meeting with Toltec ruler Lord Four Jaguar, in a depiction from the Codex Zouche-Nuttall. His name glyph, a deer head and eight dots, is above his head.
Eight Deer Jaguar Claw (Mixtec: Iya Nacuaa Teyusi Ñaña[3]), or Eight Deer for brevity,[4] was a powerful Mixtec ruler in 11th-century Oaxaca referred to in the 15th-century deerskin manuscriptCodex Zouche-Nuttall, and other Mixtec manuscripts. His surname is alternatively translated Tiger-Claw and Ocelot-Claw. John Pohl has dated his life spanning from 1063 until his assassination in 1115.[5]
Biography
Born on the Mixtec Calendar date from which he got his name, Eight Deer was the son of the high priest of TilantongoLord Five Alligator Sun Rain. His mother was Lady Eleven Water Bird Jewel. Two of his brothers, Twelve Earthquake Bloody Jaguar and Nine Flower Copal Ball with Arrow, were his faithful war companions.
He also had a half-sister, Six Lizard Jade Fan. First the fiancée and lover of Eight Deer himself, she was ultimately married to Eight Deer's archenemy Eleven Wind Bloody Jaguar, the king of the city Xipe's Bundle, also known as Red and White Bundle. The lords of Xipe's Bundle had rights to the throne of Tilantongo and were therefore the most important rivals to Eight Deer's power.
Codex Zouche-Nuttall, Mixtec pictorial codex, which is the main source of knowledge about Eight Deer Jaguar Claw
Lord Eight Deer is remembered for his military expansion. The Codex Zouche-Nuttall counts 94 cities conquered during his reign. Almost always pictured wearing a jaguar helmet, he supported the powerful Toltec ruler of Cholula, Lord Four Jaguar Face of the Night, in his attempts at expansionism, and was thus awarded a turquoise nose ornament, a symbol of Toltec royal authority.[6]
The codices also tell of his several marriages which seem to have been part of a political strategy to achieve dominance by marrying into different Mixtec royal lineages. He married Thirteen Serpent, daughter of his own stepsister and former fiancée Six Lizard.
In 1101 Eight Deer conquered Xipe's Bundle and killed his wife's father and his stepsister's husband Eleven Wind. He also tortured and killed his brothers-in-law, sparing only the youngest, Four Wind. Eight Deer's own death is described differently by modern authors. Charles C. Mann's book 1491 states that when Eight Deer was 55 years of age, Four Wind led an alliance between different Toltec and Zapotec kingdoms against Eight Deer, who was taken prisoner and sacrificed by Four Wind, his own nephew and brother-in-law. Pohl instead states that Four Wind was trusted by Eight Deer and raised as his own child, until at the age of 23 he had Eight Deer assassinated during a hunting trip.[5]
His reputation as a great ruler has given him a legendary status among the Mixtecs; some aspects of his life story as told in the pictographic codices seem to merge with myth. Furthermore, actual knowledge of his life is hindered by the lack of complete understanding of the Mixtec codices, and although the study of the codices has advanced much over the past 20 years, it is still difficult to achieve a definitive interpretation of their narrative. The narrative, as it is currently understood, is a tragic story of a man who achieves greatness but falls victim to his own hunger for power. The above biography of Eight Deer is based on the codex's interpretation by Mixtec specialist John Pohl.[7]
^Consonant with standard Mesoamerican practice, the "Eight Deer" component of his name refers to his day of birth within the 260-day Mesoamerican cycle, which cycles through 13 numbers and 20 various signs (e.g., animals, plants, natural phenomena).
Jansen, Maarten (1998). "Monte Albán y Zaachila en los codices mixtecos". In Maarten E.R.G.N. Jansen; Peter C. Kröfges; Michel R. Oudijk (eds.). In The Shadow of Monte Albán: Politics and Historiography in Postclassic Oaxaca, Mexico (in Spanish). Leiden, Netherlands: Research School CNWS (Leiden University School of Asian, African and Amerindian Studies). ISBN978-90-5789-006-2. OCLC40511286.
Pohl, John M.D. "Ancient Books: Mixtec Group Codices". John Pohl's Mesoamerica. Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc (FAMSI). Retrieved 2007-08-21.
