---
title: Feathered Serpent
description: Representation of the Mexican god
author:
  name: Graciela Paula Caldeiro
  url: http://graciela-caldeiro.idoneos.com
canonical: https://mitosyleyendas.idoneos.com/en/bestiario_mitologico/serpiente_emplumada/
source: en/bestiario_mitologico/serpiente_emplumada/index.md
---

<figure class="commons-illustration" data-commons-id="150633657">
  <img src="/bestiario_mitologico/serpiente_emplumada/resources/commons-serpiente-emplumada-150633657.jpg" width="1594" height="2008" alt="Page from a codex with a coloured feathered serpent beneath a series of signs." loading="lazy" decoding="async">
  <figcaption>Quetzalcóatl in the Codex Telleriano-Remensis (16th century). Author not identified.<br>Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Quetzalcoatl_Codex_Telleriano-Remensis.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wikimedia Commons</a>. Public domain.</figcaption>
</figure>


<div class="itemImage" style="float:right">&#10;  <near-ilustration title="Quetzalcoatl, the Plumed Serpent, God of the Wind, Learning and the Priesthood -  - : click here"></near-ilustration>&#10;</div>

**Feathered Serpent**

The feathered serpent is a representation of the Nahuatl god [Quetzalcoatl](https://mitologiaamericana.idoneos.com/297980), who was worshipped by various peoples of Mexico and Central America. The root of the name Quetzalcoatl comes from the term _quetzalli_, an expression that alludes to the bright green tail feathers of the _quetzal_, a bird, and _coatl_, simply, &quot;serpent&quot;.

He is a benevolent god toward the Aztec people, who taught them arts and crafts. There are various representations of this god in pre-Columbian Mexican architecture.