Aztec PantheonCreature
Xiuhcoatl
- Fire Breath
- Celestial Weapon Form
- Solar Connection
- Divine Destruction
The Fire Serpent, a supernatural serpent made of turquoise and fire that serves as a weapon of the gods in Aztec mythology. Huitzilopochtli wielded a xiuhcoatl to defeat his sister Coyolxauhqui and the four hundred stars. It represents the sun's rays, drought, and the destructive power of celestial fire.
About Xiuhcoatl
Turquoise Fire, the God's Weapon
Xiuhcoatl, the fire serpent, is Huitzilopochtli's weapon in the Coatepec myth: he slays Coyolxauhqui with it. The form appears in sculpture (the Templo Mayor Coyolxauhqui stone's narrative context, xiuhcoatl atlatls) as a turquoise-mosaic snake of drought-sun.
It is a divine tool more than a wild animal. The art still shows a serpent that burns, so the bestiary keeps the weapon beside the beasts.
Fire serpent in stone
Two great xiuhcoatl heads flank the Aztec Calendar Stone, their bodies forming its outer ring, and the fire serpent is also an emblem of the fire god Xiuhtecuhtli. In the New Fire Ceremony held every 52 years, the renewal of time was tied to fire, and xiuhcoatl imagery appears on the ceremonial objects connected with it. The Coatepec story is told in Book 3 of the Florentine Codex.
Quick answers about Xiuhcoatl
- What is Xiuhcoatl?
- The Fire Serpent, a supernatural serpent made of turquoise and fire that serves as a weapon of the gods in Aztec mythology. Huitzilopochtli wielded a xiuhcoatl to defeat his sister Coyolxauhqui and the four hundred stars. It represents the sun's rays, drought, and the destructive power of celestial fire.
- Where does Xiuhcoatl live?
- The atlas lists Xiuhcoatl's habitat as The Celestial Realm.
- What abilities does Xiuhcoatl have?
- The atlas lists these abilities for Xiuhcoatl: Fire Breath, Celestial Weapon Form, Solar Connection, and Divine Destruction.
Sources and further reading
Source notes
These references are recorded in the catalog. Their passage wording and translation have not been checked, so quotations are not displayed here.
- Florentine Codex, Book 3 (Huitzilopochtli at Coatepec)
About this entry
By Elizabeth Stein for Mythos Atlas. About the author. Editorial notes are grounded in the site's cited sources and can be challenged through the contact page.
The danger rating is an editorial shorthand for how the myths portray the creature, not a claim made by the sources.
Keep exploring
One myth a week, with its sources in a short email. The sign-up form is just below.