Two twin temples were built on the Templo Mayor pyramid in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, one dedicated to the great god Huitzilopochtli (representing the dry season) and the other to Tláloc, who was granted equal prestige. The massive steps leading to Tláloc's temple were painted blue and white, the former representing water, the god's most powerful element. On the north side of the pyramid, the god's temple marked the summer solstice and wet season. Coral, shells, and sea-life have been discovered inside the pyramid offerings, all of which are related to the sea. Tláloc also had a mountain temple west of Tenochtitlán, which was perched on the 400-meter-high Mt Tláloc.
Tláloc is first depicted in art on jars from Tlapacoya from the 1st century BCE, where the god is depicted wielding a lightning bolt. Teotihuacán's earliest architectural renderings originate from the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE. On numerous floors of the Great Pyramid of Quetzalcóatl in Teotihuacán, stone images of Tláloc alternate with those of Quetzalcóatl. The massive stone statue outside the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City must be one of the most intimidating images of the god (although it could alternatively be his sister Chalchhtlicue).
Tláloc is frequently represented with snakes, as are many of the most significant Mesoamerican deities. He usually has goggled eyes and big teeth like a jaguar, as seen on the famous 15th century CE vase now housed in Mexico City's National Museum of Anthropology. Tláloc's mouth may be shaped like a volute or a corn cob in stone sculpture, symbolizing how crucial the god's life-giving rain was to Mesoamerican agriculture.
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