Xipe Totec or “Our Lord the Flayed” in Náhuatl, was a Mesoamerican god whose origin is uncertain. Xipe Totec may be descended from God VI in the Olmec culture or from the Yope civilization in the southern highlands of Guerrero. Xipe Totec was also known as Tlatlauhca, Tlatlauhqui, Red Tezcatlipoca and Youalahuan. The goddess Xilonen-Chicomecoatl was the female equivalent of Xipe Totec. Early depictions of Xipe Totec first appeared near Teotihuacán in Xolalpan and Texcoco. The deity most likely became an important Aztec god during the 15th century due to the Aztec conquest of the Gulf Coast under the reign of Axaycatl. Xipe Totec was an important Aztec god also worshiped by Tlaxcaltecans, Zapotecs, Mixtecs, Tarascans, and Huastecs. Xipe Totec was the protector of the Cuauhtli day and the trecena that begins with 1-Itzcuintli in the Aztec calendar. The Aztec civilization was founded on religion and relied on art to represent their beliefs. Rituals played an important role in keeping the world around them prosperous, and paying homage to their ancestors was crucial. Xipe Totec was just one of several gods honored by the Aztecs. Xipe Totec is the god of shedding skins and therefore usually associated with rejuvenation and spring. Also believed to be the god who invented war, some of his symbols included the pointed cap and rattle staff, which was also the war attire of the Mexica emperor. In the Xipe Totec codices he was depicted wearing flayed human skin with the skin of his hands hanging from his wrists. Its body is usually painted light brown on one side and yellow on the other, along with its legs, hands, neck, lips, and mouth painted red. The mouth is open, the ears are pierced and the eyes are not visible. Xipe Totec machine... middle of paper... and the obsidian blades have been replaced with feathers. The prisoner was forced to fight against a total of five Aztec warriors: two jaguar warriors, two eagle warriors, and a left-handed warrior. The prisoners would obviously have been put at a disadvantage which would have led to them losing the battle and being sacrificed. Priests would extract the hearts of such prisoners as offerings to Xipe Totec. Yet during the reign of Moctezuma Xocoyotzin a prisoner of war whose name was Tlahuicole survived the ceremonial battle. Tlahuicole managed to prove himself to be a strong and skilled warrior and was granted freedom by the emperor. However, he insisted on being sacrificed gloriously and refused to leave. This particular style of sacrifice took place outside Yopico and marked the end of the Tlacaxipehualiztli festival in honor of Xipe Totec.