cihuacoatl was in reality occupied by a man, but the associations with femininity were significant enough that the cihuacoatl, of the same name as the goddess, wore women's dress for ceremonies. As Mesoamerican states became more centralized over time, men's power became more associated with their control over women and their capacity for productive and reproductive labor. As a result, opportunities available to women were gradually limited. In the case of the Mexica, military concerns may have eclipsed women's public significance. Gender ambiguity Although pre-Columbian Mesoamerican art contained depictions of the body as male or female as represented by genitalia or secondary sex characteristics, it also included representations of bodies with exposed chests and waists but no visible sexual characteristics. Depictions of rituals conducted by elite Mesoamericans have included women dressed in the traditional costume of men and men dressed in the traditional costume of women. Classic Maya text also includes situations where gender is not linguistically marked or where gender is marked linguistically as male for a speaker who appears to be a woman or vice versa. This evidence suggests considerable fluidity between the genders in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican society. See also Mesoamerica Gender in Maya society Women rulers in Maya society Notes Bibliography Mesoamerican society Mesoamerica