PLace-names in mexico-TenochTiTLan • 159they had been despoiled of lands granted to them yet even
earlier, in the mid-fifteenth century under Itzcoatl in the
region around San Juan Ixhuatepec. As they put it, “The
aforementioned don Diego [Tehue tzquititzin] tyranni-
cally, with little fear of our Lord God, took the lands from
us by force, throwing some of us into jail, driving others
from their lands, and tormenting and visiting us with many
other vexations.” 47 We do not know Tehuetzquititzin’s side
of the story about this land parcel; these could have been
patrimonial lands, farmed for him by dependents, who
were making their own land grab.
Instead of writing off Tehuetzquititzin as simply an
abusive ruler, caught with his hand in the till or bullying
peasants off their lands, let us return to the Genaro García
30 and put it in the context of what we know of the early
part of Tehuetzquititzin’s reign, where we find him con-
secrated as closely as possible to the style of pre-Hispanic
Mexica rulers, and living in San Pablo Teopan, as would his
son Pedro Dionosio. 48 On folios 8v–9r of this document,
the skilled women textile workers present their account
of the goods delivered to the gobernador, which include
563 embroidered borders arranged in the page’s three regis-
ters (figure 7.11). Such an embroidered border is frequently
seen set as the border of capes that were for the exclusive
use of elites, and the one produced in the largest quantity
(365) on folio 8v has what is called a tenixyo, the eye border
design; we see it worn by the Tetzcocan noble Tocuepotzin,
whose elegant full-page portrait was included in the Codex
Ixtlilxochitl (figure 7.12), and by Moteuczoma as he appears
in the Humboldt Fragment II (see figure 4.6). 49 In its list
of the cloaks that warriors were allowed to wear to mark
their status, the Codex Mendoza reserved it for warriors
who had taken three or four captives, but not one or two.
These borders would undoubtedly have been sewn to the
edge of a cloak or loincloth of another fabric to elevate its
status, making it appropriate for elite wear. Also included
in the goods delivered are hanks of thread, some dyed
black, others red, and some spun with feathers, a labori-
ous technique used to create feather-embedded cloth. The
quantity of borders clearly indicates that these were not
for the exclusive use of one person alone; as status mark-
ers, the amount was excessive for the gobernador’s entire
household, which would certainly include people whose
status proscribed the wearing of such elite garments.
So how are we to account for this large demand for very
special and highly recognizable textiles? In accounts of the
vibrant pre-Hispanic feasting culture of the Mexica rulers,
textiles were among the gifts given by the ruler as a way of
cementing bonds between ruling elites. We should recall
the account of ritual gifting between Nezahualcoyotl and
Moteuczoma I, written by the Dominican Diego Durán
and discussed in chapter 5, where the Tetzcocan ruler gave
his Mexica counterpart presents of “gold jewelry, precious
stones, ear ornaments, lip plugs, exquisite featherwork,
shields, weapons, mantles and beautifully worked breech-
c l o t h s .” 50 Zorita echoes the Durán account of elite gifting,
but emphasizes how feasts benefited a larger populace:
“All that they [the indigenous wealthy merchants] gave
went into a common fund that the ruler expended for the
enjoyment of all on these festivals. When the festival had
ended, the supreme ruler gave to the lesser lords, his vas-
sals, and to the lords of neighboring towns who attended
these festivals, rich cloaks and other presents.” 51
Two other sets of goods listed in the complaint offiguRe 7.12. Unknown creator, portrait of Tocuepotzin, Codex
Ixtlilxochitl, fol. 105r, ca. 1580. Ms. Mexicain 65–71, Bibliothèque
nationale de France, Paris.