Xochiquetzal: The Eternal Flower Goddess

At the center of the Aztec paradise stood a flowering tree the gods were forbidden to break. The goddess who broke it was Xochiquetzal — patron of weavers, lovers, midwives, and the spirits of women who died in childbirth. Her name in Nahuatl means "e;precious flower"e; or "e;flower-feather,"e; and her cult ran through the household and the craft workshop more than the imperial temple. The feather...