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Quetzalcoatl's
connection to the feathered serpent is as a result of the
brilliantly coloured quetzal bird, native to the western area of
Guatemala and Mexico, which was regarded as the most beautiful
bird and called Quetzaltotolin, meaning "most precious".
The symbol of the feathered serpent was Quetzalcoatl; meaning not
just feathered serpent, but "most precious serpent".
Those
who worshipped Quetzalcoatl were thought to be able to heal and
redeem humanity. As a result people who worshipped him became to
be thought of as a type of nobility cult and only special
sacrifices selected from the Nobel classes were made to him, and
then only in secret. These sacrifices were usually made by men
masked to hide their identity. In contrast their spiritual leader
was a highly decorated female known as the High Priestess (Section
Leader).
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