A tilmàtli (or tilma; , ) was a type of outer garment worn by men as a cloak/cape, documented from the late Postclassic and early Colonial eras among the Aztec and other peoples of central Mexico.
Styling The garment was to be worn at the front like a long apron, or alternatively draped across the shoulders as a cloak. It was also frequently used as a carry-all.Handbook to Life in the Aztec World by Manuel Aguilar-Moreno, Facts on File, New York, 2006
Significance Several different types of the garment were in use, designed for the various classes in society. Upper classes wore a tilmàtli of cotton cloth knotted over the right shoulder, while the middle class used a tilmàtli made of ayate fibre, a coarse fabric derived from the threads of the maguey agave. It was knotted over the left shoulder. The lower classes knotted the garment behind the neck, where it could serve for carrying.The Essential Codex Mendoza by Frances F. Berdan and Patricia Rieff Anawalt, University of California Press, London, 1997
Miraculous image
A very famous tilmàtli was that claimed to be worn by Juan Diego in 1531; according to tradition, an image of the Virgin Mary of Our Lady of Guadalupe miraculously appeared on it in the presence of the bishop of Mexico City, Juan de Zumárraga.See Johnston (1981). The image is preserved in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe which attracts millions of pilgrims annually. Historians, forensic analysts, art restorationists and skeptics believe that the image is a painting created by Marcos Cipac de Aquino, and the story behind the miraculous tilma is considered "pious legend".
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