was an image of the duality and unity of nature. The upper half of the
face symbolized heaven with its two eyes, the sun and moon. The mouth and
teeth, the Nahuatl name for which=tlan-tli was homonymous with the affix
tlan=land or earth=tlalli, emblematized earth, darkness and the Below. The
nose with its two nostrils emblematized inhalation and exhalation. The
sanctity attached to this mystic union of two streams of breath led to the
consecration of the nose by the wearing of a symbolical ornament attached
to it.