Kukulkan (Plumed Serpent)
In the Guatemalan highlands, the plumed serpent is Q'uq'umatz (Gukumatz), the creator deity of the Popol Vuh. With the Heart of Sky he brought the world into being and, in K'iche' cosmology, helped shape humanity from maize. The feathered-serpent identity unites Maya, K'iche', and Aztec traditions, and Q'uq'umatz remains a living symbol of Maya identity today.