Legend

Adapted from the text written by the illustrious Papantec journalist, poet, politician, diplomat and academic José de Jesús Núñez y Domínguez:

One of the wives of King Teniztli, third of the Totonac dynasty, had such a beautiful daughter that she was named Tzacopontziza (Morning Star) and was consecrated to the cult of the goddess Tonacayohua so that no one could gaze upon her beauty. However, a young prince called Zkatan-Oxga (Young Deer) fell for her despite knowing that it was a sacrilege punishable by death.

One day that Morning Star had left the temple to make an offering to the goddess, her beloved captured her and fled with her to the most perilous part of the mountain. They hadn’t gone too far when a horrible Monster appeared, surrounded them with waves of fire and forced them to retreat hastily. When they got back to the main path, they were stopped by Tonacayohua’s priests who, in a fit of rage, cut the lovers’ throats on the spot. Their lifeless bodies were carried to the temple, stripped of their hearts and tossed down a canyon.

In the place where they were sacrificed, the grass dried out as if the blood of the two victims was cursed. A few months later, a thick bush began to grow and a climbing orchid quickly surrounded it with its fragile, elegant and chiseled vines, which resembled a woman’s arms.

One morning, small and delicate flowers covered the orchid and the whole place was filled with wonderful and indescribable scents. The priests and the townsfolk had no doubt that the blood of the prince and princess had transformed into the bush and the orchid, respectively. Their surprise was even greater when the adoring flowers converted into long, delicate beans that, when mature, released an even more penetrating perfume. Since that day, the orchid was declared a sacred plant. From a princess’s blood, vanilla or Caixanath, the hidden flower, had been born.