Knowledge of Muisca mythology has come from Muisca scholars Javier Ocampo López, Pedro Simón, Lucas Fernández de Piedrahita, Juan de Castellanos and

conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada y Rivera, also spelled as Ximénez and De Quezada, (; 1509 – 16 February 1579) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador in northern South America, territories currently known as Colombia. He explored the territory n ...

who was the European making first contact with the Muisca in the 1530s.

Muisca mythology

The times before the

Spanish conquest The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It ...

of the

Muisca Confederation The Muisca Confederation was a loose confederation of different Muisca rulers (''zaques'', ''zipas'', ''iraca'', and ''tundama'') in the central Andes, Andean highlands of what is today Colombia before the Spanish conquest of the Americas, Spanis ...

are filled with mythology. The first confirmed human rulers of the two capitals Hunza and Bacatá are said to have descended from mythical creatures. Apart from that other Muisca myths exist, such as the legendary ''

El Dorado El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...

'' and the Monster of Lake Tota.

Mythological creatures

Several mythological creatures have been described by the

chronicler A chronicle (, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, ...

s: * Thomagata, said to have been one of the most religious of the ''zaques'', after Idacansás * Idacansás, allegedly a mythical priest from

Sugamuxi Sugamuxi (died 1539) was the last '' iraca''; ''cacique'' of the sacred City of the Sun Suamox. Sugamuxi, presently called Sogamoso, was an important city in the religion of the Muisca who inhabited the Altiplano Cundiboyacense in the times be ...

who was able to change the order of things * Goranchacha, a mythical ''cacique'' who moved the capital of the northern Muisca from Ramiriquí to the later capital Hunza * Pacanchique, according to Muisca myths recovered his fiancé Azay from ruler Quemuenchatocha by first turning her into a dead person and then bringing her back to life using different plants. He also showed the Spanish conquistadores the way to Nemequene's palace Other Muisca people where human and mythological character converge are: *

Hunzahúa Hunzahúa was the first ''zaque''; ruler of the northern Muisca people, Muisca with capital Tunja, Hunza, named after him. His contemporary ''zipa'' of the southern Muisca was Meicuchuca. Biography Hunzahúa, heir of Idacansás, was a ''cacique' ...

, first '' zaque'' of Hunza, allegedly committing

incest Incest ( ) is sexual intercourse, sex between kinship, close relatives, for example a brother, sister, or parent. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by lineag ...

with his sister and said to have fled *

Meicuchuca Meicuchuca (died 1470) was the first ruler (''zipa'') of Bacatá, as of around 1450. His '' zaque'' counterpart ruling over the northern area of the Muisca territory was Hunzahúa. Biography Little is known about Meicuchuca and many stories ...

, first ''

zipa When the Spain, Spanish arrived in the central Colombian highlands, the region was organized into the Muisca Confederation, which had two rulers; the ''Zipa'' was the ruler of the southern part and based in Funza, Muyquytá. The ''Zaque'' was the ...

'' of Bacatá, one of his wives mythologically turned into a snakeMeicuchuca, the lover of the snake
- Pueblos Originarios - accessed 05-05-2016

Other Muisca myths

* ''

'', the man or city made of gold, that was not so mythical but a main motive for the Spanish to conquer Colombia. The ritual is represented in the

Muisca raft The Muisca raft (''Balsa Muisca'' in Spanish language, Spanish), sometimes referred to as the Golden Raft of El Dorado, is a pre-Columbian Votive offering, votive piece created by the Muisca people, Muisca, an Andean people of Colombia in the Cor ...

, a piece of gold working found in

Pasca Pasca is a town and municipality in the Cundinamarca Department, Cundinamarca department of Colombia located in the Andes. It belongs to the Sumapaz Province. Pasca is situated on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense at a distance of from the capital B ...

almost 400 years after the arrival of the Spanish * Monster of Lake Tota, allegedly a monstrous snake or fish living in Lake Tota''Mitos y Leyendas de Colombia'', Eugenia Villa Posse; Ed. IADAP, 1993; S. 204
- accessed 05-05-2016 *

Hunzahúa Well The Hunzahúa Well (Spanish: ''Pozo de Hunzahúa'') is an archeological site of the Muisca people, Muisca located in the city of Tunja, Boyacá Department, Boyacá, which in the time of the Muisca Confederation was called Hunza. The well is named ...

, a well that according to the mythology of the Muisca originated from spilled

chicha ''Chicha'' is a Fermentation, fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post-Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest periods, corn beer (''chicha de jo ...

when the mother of

caught him and his older sister, Noncetá, while they were copulating.Hunzahúa Well
- Pueblos Originarios * Fura and Tena, the first woman and man created by the god Are to populate the earth. Because Fura was not faithful, they lost their immortality, so they aged and died. Are took pity on them and turned them into rocky crags protected from storms, and Fura's tears became into emeralds.

References

Bibliography

* {{Muisca navbox, Mythology and religion, state=expanded

Mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

Muisca mythology

Mythological creatures

Other Muisca myths

See also

References

Bibliography