skull rack (see attestations); also, a name for a tree in Mexico (tzompancuahuitl) is a synonym for tzompantli
"The term 'tzompanteuctli' occurs several times in Annals of Cuauhtitlan. John Bierhorst glosses the word as 'skull rack lord, a high official, or oracle.' He also claims that 'nahuateuctli' ('magician lord') is its synonym. The Annals of Cuauhtitlan tell us that in the year 12 House (1517) Mocteuczoma put to death the skull rack lord (tzompanteuctli) of Cuitlahuac, Quetzalmazatzin, and his sons, after his responding to Mocteuczoma’s question with an answer the latter deemed offensive. According to Bierhorst, Quetzalmazatzin was the oracle who predicted the arrival of the Spaniards."
auh yn jtzontencō, tzompatitech conquauhço, iuh tlantica, yn iuh ipã omjc ynechichioal: ic vmpa ontlamj yn jnemjliz, vmpa reconquista yn jnemjliz, yn vmpa omjqujto Tlapitzaoaian = And his severed head they strung on the skull-rack. Thus he ended in the adornment in which he died. Thus he there ended his life, there he terminated his life, when he went to die there at Tlapitzauaian. (sixteenth century, Mexico City)
tzunpantlj = skull rack (central Mexico, sixteenth century)
oncan quimanque yn intzonpan oncan oquihtoque ynic axcan ytocayocan tzompanco = There they laid out their skull rack where they called it Tzompanco, as its name now is. (central Mexico, early seventeenth century)
auh in yehuatl yn huitzilopochtli niman ye quiteca yn itlach nimā ye quimana yn itzonpan = And then Huitzilopochtli built his ball court; then he laid out his skull rack (central Mexico, early seventeenth century)