As you can see, Xochiquetzal, the Aztec goddess of feminine beauty and sexual power is depicted having the following:

• Extravagant dress,
• Dark skin,
• Full figure,
• Round face, and
• Large features

Interestingly, other than what can be gleaned from authentic images of their goddesses (like the one above), the Aztecs left behind no clue as to what traits they considered to be physically beautiful in females.  If the Aztecs made no mention, at least in what artifacts have been found, about beauty or physical appearance, these things may have been very trivial in Aztec culture.  This speaks to the shift in the importance of physical appearance in the Western world.

Here are a few modern representations of Xochiquetzal to contrast with the ancient one above:

Almost everything about her appearance, save for her extravagant dress, is different in these newer representations.

To POST-SPANISH CONQUEST BEAUTY→