Chalchiuhnenetzin ('noble

jade Jade is an umbrella term for two different types of decorative rocks used for jewelry or Ornament (art), ornaments. Jade is often referred to by either of two different silicate mineral names: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in t ...

doll'; ''chal-cheeoo-neh-NEH-tseen'') was an

Aztec The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the Post-Classic stage, post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central ...

princess of

Tenochtitlan , also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, was a large Mexican in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear, but the date 13 March 1325 was chosen in 1925 to celebrate the 600th annivers ...

, and a Queen consort of Tlatelolco by marriage to

Moquihuix Moquihuix (or Moquihuixtli) (died 1473) was the fourth ''tlatoani'' (ruler) of Tlatelolco. He died in 1473 in the Battle of Tlatelolco, a military conflict fought between Tlatelolco and Tenochtitlan. Moquihuix was married to Chalchiuhnenetzin ...

of Tlatelolco. She is foremost known in history for the famous legends about her lovers.

Biography

Family

She was a daughter of prince Tezozomoc and his cousin, princess Atotoztli II. She was the sister of the emperors

Axayacatl Axayacatl (; ; ; meaning "face of water"; –1481) was the sixth of the of Tenochtitlan and Emperor of the Aztec Triple Alliance. Biography Early life and background Axayacatl was a son of the princess Atotoztli II and her cousin, prince ...

Tizoc Tizocic (), or Tizocicatzin (), usually known in English as Tizoc, was the seventh tlatoani of Tenochtitlan, ''tlatoani'' of Tenochtitlan. His name means, "He who makes sacrifices" or "He who does penance." Either Tizoc or his successor Ahuitzot ...

and

Ahuitzotl Ahuitzotl (, ) was the eighth Aztec ruler, the '' Huey Tlatoani'' of the city of Tenochtitlan, son of princess Atotoztli II. His name literally means "Water Thorny" and was also applied to the otter. It is also theorized that more likely, the ...

and the aunt of

Moctezuma II Moctezuma Xocoyotzin . ( – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma,Other variant spellings include Moctezuma, Motewksomah, Motecuhzomatzin, Moteuczoma, Motecuhzoma, Motē ...

and

Cuitláhuac Cuitláhuac (, ) (c. 1476 – 1520) or Cuitláhuac (in Spanish orthography; , , honorific form: Cuitlahuatzin) was the 10th '' Huey Tlatoani'' (emperor) of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan for 80 days during the year Two Flint (1520).Chimalpahin ...

Marriage

Chalchiuhnenetzin married

(d. 1473), king of Tlatelolco, an ''

altepetl The ( , plural ''altepeme'' or ''altepemeh'') was the local, ethnically-based political entity, usually translated into English as "city-state", of pre-Columbian Nahuatl-speaking societiesSmith 1997 p. 37 in the Americas. The ''altepetl'' was ...

'', or city-state. She had a son with him, Axayaca, named after her brother. Moquihuix neglected Chalchiuhnenetzin, preferring the company of other women. Reportedly, he was not attracted to her because she "was quite thin, was not fleshy". He gave the gifts sent to her by her brother to his mistresses, relegated Chalchiuhnenetzin to the position of a concubine, gave her only simple coarse clothing and had her sleeping in a corner; reportedly, he also beat her. The ill treatment she was subjected to angered her brother, and was given as the reason for why the Aztecs attacked the Kingdom of Tlatelolco in 1473. Her spouse died in the

Battle of Tlatelolco The Battle of Tlatelolco was fought between the two Pre-Columbian era, pre-Hispanic Altepetl, altepetls (or City-state, city-states) Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco (altepetl), Tlatelolco, two independent polities which inhabited the island of Lake Te ...

, and Tlatelolco was conquered by her brother Axayacatl. After the war she returned to her brother's court.

Legend

Chalchiuhnenetzin is known in history for the famous legend about her lovers. According to the legend, Chalchiuhnenetzin was given her own residence when she married, where she lived with her own court and was visited by her spouse. Allegedly, she sent her servants out to fetch beautiful men for her to be her lovers. As it was prohibited for a woman to have sex outside of marriage, she had her lovers killed after intercourse.Grisel Gomez Cano: The Return to Coatlicue: Goddesses and Warladies in Mexican Folklore, 2010 Each lover was made into a statue after death, and when her husband visited her and asked her about the statues, she answered that they were statues of her gods. However, she eventually decided to keep three of her lovers alive. When the king came to visit, he noticed that one of these men was wearing a bracelet he had given his wife. When he decided that he wanted to sleep with her, he noted that she had been replaced in his bed by a statue. He was directed to a room where he discovered Chalchiuhnenetzin committing adultery with her three lovers. As punishment, Chalchiuhnenetzin, her lovers and her entire household staff were publicly executed. This execution was described as a spectacle and the reason as to why the Aztec king was insulted about the treatment of his sister and decided to attack his brother-in-law.

Ancestry

Cultural references

Chalchiuhnenetzin is portrayed as the character Jade Doll in the novel ''

'' by Gary Jennings, published in 1980. The legend of her lovers and her execution is part of the narrative of the protagonist in the novel's story. In the novel she is married to Nezahualpilli.

References

{{Reflist Tenochca nobility Nahua nobility Aztec people Princesses 15th-century women Indigenous Mexican women