Tzompantli: Sacrifice of Many Victims

The purpose of a Tzompantli in pre-Hispanic Mexico was to display the heads of sacrificed human victims. Sometimes this structure was made of stone with carved human skulls but in the Grand Tenochtitlan the display of real human skulls was extremely important. Skull racks were usually placed near temples or ball courts constructed using rows of skulls carefully put together. A Tzompantli was a statement to the Gods that the cycle of death and life was honored.

Tzompantli: Sacrifice of Many Victims is a remembrance of all the victims of Female Femicide. Each individual oil on wood panel’s faceless skull represents all women killed with extreme impunity all over the world. Their gender made them part of the contemporary human sacrifice currently happening in Mexico. The pink color “Rosa Mexicano” used as the background is the staple of the martyrs of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, and has been adopted as the representative color for the Mexican nation and its identity. This color in my installation in conjunction with the realistic rendering of the skulls represents the cruel and apathetic identity of a country towards its women and the impunity of male dominance that persists in all aspects of our society.

© 2023 Belinda Flores-Shinshillas