Aztec

Culture and

Religion

Huitzilopochtli, Aztec god of sun & war

Hernán Cortés and his Spanish Conquistadores landed

on the coast of Mexico, at Veracruz, and traveled from

there to the capital of Tenochtitlan (tay noach teet lawn),

which is present day Mexico City.

Hernán Cortés

The Aztec capital,

Tenochtitlan, was found

on a man made island in

the middle of Lake

Texcoco. Notice the

causeways that

connected it to the land.

These causeways had

bridges that could be

removed to enhance

defense of the city. The

point was to make the

city more difficult to

attack.

The Aztecs invented the “chinampa” agricultural system of man-made

islands with huejote trees on each side of the artificial islands to keep

them from eroding. This was the most productive farming system in

the world at that time!

Tlaloc, the

Rain God

Model of the Templo Mayor or the main

temple for the Aztecs, located in the

capital city of Tenochtitlan.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/ScaleModelTemploMayor.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/ScaleModelTemploMayor.JPG

Model of the center of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan,

with the Templo Mayor at the back center.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/TenochtitlanModel.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/TenochtitlanModel.JPG

Ethiopian Stone or Tecpatl which

was the sacrificial knife used to

cut open the chest to allow the

priest access to the heart.

Ceremonial knife in rock holder.

Maize was provided as a new food source for the

Europeans.

Huitzilopochtli

The god of war and

the sun. Loaded the

sun in a chariot and

carried it across the

horizon each day.

He was fueled by

the hearts of human

sacrifices.

http://home.freeuk.net/elloughton13/_vti_bin/shtml.dll/aztecgod.htm/map12http://home.freeuk.net/elloughton13/_vti_bin/shtml.dll/aztecgod.htm/map12

Ollama - ancient ball game played with a

solid rubber ball.

Details of masonry designs placed on the walls

of the ball court.

Ollama hoop. Vertical hoop that the teams tried to

get the rubber ball through.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Monte_Alb%C3%A1n-12-05oaxaca024.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Monte_Alb%C3%A1n-12-05oaxaca024.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Chich%C3%A9n_Itz%C3%A1_Goal.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Chich%C3%A9n_Itz%C3%A1_Goal.jpg

El Castillo pyramid (temple) in Chichén Itza, on the

Yucatan Peninsula.

Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuácan, Mexico.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Mendoza_HumanSacrifice.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Mendoza_HumanSacrifice.jpg

Sacrificial gladiatorial

combat with a Jaguar

Knight or Eagle Warrior

(elite forces) was

allowed for captured

warriors who were

particularly good

fighters. If they won,

they were granted

freedom. They had to

fight while anchored by

a large stone and with

feather clubs.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Codex_Magliabechiano_ritual_sacrificial_combat.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Codex_Magliabechiano_ritual_sacrificial_combat.jpg

The Jaguar and Eagle

Warriors were the

elite Aztec forces.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Jaguar_warrior.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Jaguar_warrior.jpg

Aztec warriors shown in the Florentine

Codex

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Florentine_Codex_IX_Aztec_Warriors.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Florentine_Codex_IX_Aztec_Warriors.jpg

Macuahuitl – sword used by the Aztecs

which consisted of a wooden club,

embedded with razor sharp obsidian

rock pieces.

Atlatl – spear thrower that allowed the

warrior to get more momentum on the

throw.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Kodeks_tudela_21.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Kodeks_tudela_21.jpg

Child infected with smallpox

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Smallpox.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Smallpox.jpg