Eight Deer Jaguar Claw

Eight Deer Jaguar Claw was an 11th-century Mixtec ruler who unified several kingdoms in what is now Oaxaca, Mexico.

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Mixtec codices: Screenfold manuscripts made by Mixtec communities that record histories, genealogies, and rituals in pictorial form. These manuscripts provide the principal surviving accounts of Eight Deer's life and campaigns.
Mixtec kingdoms: Independent or allied polities ruled by Mixtec dynasties in pre-Columbian Oaxaca. Eight Deer expanded his authority among these competing political centers.
Lady Six Monkey: A Mixtec queen of the 11th century, known from pictorial histories for her rule and military campaigns. Her political career intersected with Eight Deer's dynastic ambitions and conflicts.
Conquest of Tututepec: The military expansion by which Eight Deer established control over the coastal Mixtec center of Tututepec. This victory gave him a strong base beyond the highland kingdoms.
Codex Zouche-Nuttall: A pre-Columbian Mixtec screenfold manuscript containing dynastic histories and accounts of Eight Deer Jaguar Claw. Its pages narrate episodes central to reconstructing his career.
Tututepec: A Mixtec kingdom on Oaxaca's Pacific coast that became a major political center. Eight Deer established a powerful base there after his rise to rule.
Four Jaguar Face of the Night: A Mixtec ruler and religious authority associated with Eight Deer's political rise. He performed a ritual initiation that strengthened Eight Deer's claims to power.
Eight Deer's alliance with Toltecs: The alliance depicted between Eight Deer and Toltec powers in Mixtec historical manuscripts. The alliance extended his reach and supported his claims to authority.
Codex Bodley: A Mixtec screenfold manuscript preserving genealogies and histories of ruling houses in Oaxaca. Its dynastic records help situate Eight Deer within Mixtec royal lineages.
Tilantongo: A highland Mixtec kingdom and prestigious center of dynastic authority in Oaxaca. Its rulers and political standing were central to Eight Deer's bid for supremacy.