The poinsettia lends its passionate color to legends and folklore about everything from young love to the rage of war.
Decking the halls : the folklore and traditions of Christmas plants
by Linda E. Allen.
Minocqua, Wis. : Willow Creek Press, c2000.
With so many customs and traditions during the Christmas season, we often do not pause to wonder and ponder about how and why they began. Of all the seasonal celebrations of the year, Christmas has more traditional plants with their accompanying legends and symbolism than any other season. Holly, ivy, mistletoe, the poinsettia, rosemary, the Yule log, and the most popular and recognized of all--the Christmas tree--each has its own fascinating legend and history. Drawing from Christian practices, along with ancient Druid, Celtic, Norse and Roman beliefs, Decking the Halls explores the history of our popular Christmas plants and flowers during this most holy season.
Poinsettias : the December flower--myth & legend, history & botanical fact
Christine Anderson & Terry Tischer.
Tiburon, CA : Waters Edge Press, 1997, c1998.
The only book about poinsettias! Never before has a book unearthed how this once obscure weed was transformed into a universally recognizable symbol of Christmas. Yet from Dallas to Denmark, from potted plants to pop culture, poinsettias are the December flower. Each year 150 million of the colorful, carefully cultivated beauties are purchased in more than 40 countries, and their distinctive profile is used to turn thousands of ordinary items into festive-looking Yuletide merchandise. Blooming with 95 stunning antique images and color photographs, Poinsettias is a visual treat as well as a comprehensive history full of little known, fun facts and practical horticultural advice. The perfect gift for any season.
"...beautifully illustrated...a fascinating read...especially loved the layout..".
Poinsettias are native to Mexico. The Aztecs cultivated the plant for making a fever reducing medicine from the bracts. Their love story involves a beautiful princess and a warrior. Unable to be together the princess was a like a wilting flower and died of a broken heart. The flower goddess, Xoxhipilli, changed her into a red poinsettia for her purity.
When the Toltecs were defending their temple from the Aztecs, all the elders were killed. The young boys put on the headdresses of the slain and their god, Quetzalcoatl, lit the feathers on fire. The Aztecs saw the flames and retreated. When the boys took off the headdresses and placed them on the ground, beautiful poinsettias grew in their place as a tribute for their bravery.
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Poinsettias are not poisonous. A study at Ohio State University showed that a 50-pound child would have to eat more than 600 poinsettia bracts might have a slight stomach ache. The sap of a Poinsettia can irritate the skin and cause a rash. |
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Ohio State University |
There are two legends about these Flowers of the Holy Night. A young girl and a boy had no gift to present to the Holy Child. An angel advised the girl to gather weeds from the roadside and place them at the manger. As she did the weeds burst into blooms of red poinsettias. The boy was so distraught that he fell to his knees and asked for forgiveness. When he rose up poinsettias sprouted up from where he was kneeling.
The plant was introduced to the United States and named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first United States Minister to Mexico. After seeing them growing in the wild had them shipped back to his greenhouse in South Carolina and became a favorite Christmas flower.
The Aztecs
Richard F. Townsend.
London ; New York : Thames & Hudson, 2009.
Richard Townsend gives the complete history of the Aztec civilization's rise from humble nomads to empire builders. Within a hundred years, the Aztecs established the largest empire in Mesoamerican history, and at Tenochtitlan built a vast, shimmering city in a lake, a Venice of the New World. The book ends with a dramatic narrative of the Spanish conquest, as seen from the Aztec viewpoint.
The Aztec world
edited by Elizabeth M. Brumfiel and Gary M. Feinman.
New York : Abrams ; Chicago : In association with The Field Museum, 2008.
"The Aztec World is an illustrated survey of the Aztecs based on insightful research by a team of international experts from the United States and Mexico. In addition to traditional subjects like cosmology, religion, human sacrifice, and political history, this book covers such concerns as the environment and agriculture, health and disease, women and social status, and urbanism. It also discusses the effects of European conquests on Aztec culture and society, in addition to offering contemporary perspectives on their civilization."--BOOK JACKET.
Bernardino de Sahagun, first anthropologist
Miguel León-Portilla ; translation by Mauricio J. Mixco.
Norman : University of Oklahoma Press, c2002.
"He was sent from Spain on a religious crusade to Mexico to "detect the sickness of idolatry," but Bernardino de Sahagun (c. 1499-1590) instead became the first anthropologist of the New World. The Franciscan monk developed a deep appreciation for Aztec culture and the Nahuatl language. In this biography, Miguel Leon-Portilla presents the life story of a fascinating man who came to Mexico intent on changing the traditions and cultures he encountered but instead ended up working to preserve them, even at the cost of persecution."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
The Codex Borgia : a full-color restoration of the ancient Mexican manuscript
Gisele Diaz and Alan Rodgers ; with an introduction and commentary by Bruce E. Byland.
New York : Dover Publications, 1993.
First republication of remarkable repainting of great Mexican codex, dated to ca. AD 1400. 76 large full-color plates show gods, kings, warriors, mythical creatures, and abstract designs. Introduction.
War and society in ancient MesoAmerica
Ross Hassig.
Berkeley : University of California Press, c1992.
In this study of warfare in ancient Mesoamerica, Ross Hassig offers new insight into three thousand years of Mesoamerican history, from roughly 1500 B.C. to the Spanish conquest. He examines the methods, purposes, and values of warfare as practiced by the major pre-Columbian societies and shows how warfare affected the rise of the state.
Article by: St. Louis Public Library staff
