Mask of Tezcatlipoca
- Audio guide stop: 142
- Gallery: Room 27
- Culture: Aztec; Mixtec
- Made in: Mexico
- Date: 1400 - 1521
- Object type: back-ornament, mosaic, human remains
- Materials: human bone; turquoise; conch shell; pyrite; deer skin; lignite; pine; agave
- Museum number: Am,St.401
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is "The Turquoise Mosaics," an Aztec back-ornament made of a human skull adorned with turquoise and lignite. This striking artifact combines human bone with carefully arranged materials like conch shell, pyrite, and deerskin. The eyes are made of polished pyrite, while the nasal cavity is lined with a shell believed to be from the red thorny oyster. Traces of ochre pigment suggest the long deerskin straps were once painted red.
This piece represents Tezcatlipoca, an important Aztec deity often linked with mirrors and prophecy. Likely used as a ceremonial back ornament, it reflects the deep spiritual and artistic traditions of the Aztec and Mixtec cultures. Created in Mexico between 1400 and 1521, the object is a powerful example of Mesoamerican craftsmanship and symbolism.
See it in person
Mask of Tezcatlipoca is on display in Room 27 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 142, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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