Spider Abdomen Depicts Mesoamerican Symbology

I came across the image above on Ristorante Mystica today. While the spider might look a little bit peculiar it is in fact an example of the Cyclocosmia or "Trap-Door" spider. It uses that unusual shell-like back to block burrows it makes for itself.



What struck me about the imagery though was the actual pattern on the spider's abdomen. It reminded me of Mesoamerican depictions of the Sun God. Sure enough, after a little bit of searching I found a suitable image of Tlatlauhaqui, the Zapotec Sun god. I edited the image slightly (colouring etc.) to allow for a clearer match up between the two.

A little bit of something; make of it what you will.