“To the ancient Aztec and Maya, man’s best friend was also a hairless, ugly-cute healer, occasional food source, and, most importantly, guide to the Underworld.
Sometimes known as the Mexican Hairless dog, the xoloitzcuintli (pronounced “show-low-itz-QUEENT-ly”) gets its name from two words in the language of the Aztecs: Xolotl, the god of lightning and death, and itzcuintli, or dog. According to Aztec belief, the Dog of Xolotl was created by the god to guard the living and guide the souls of the dead through the dangers of Mictlán, the Underworld.”
I think it’s worth pointing out that this is a reconstructed breed and not the lineage used by the Mexica. Those dogs died out with European contact. youtu.be/osMu6i2txFA
Did the original breed look anything like the current one? I was just about to say it’s uncanny how the ancient Aztecs and Egyptians had a similar looking death-related mythological thing (this dog and Anubis).
mildlyinteresting
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