Founding of Tenochtitlan (.WAV)
Founding of Tenochtitlan (.WAV)
For years, the Aztecs were comprised of nomadic and mercenary tribes who aligned themselves with local states in order to sustain themselves. One of the greatest Aztec stories reminds us that they never forgot their destiny, that their patron and War God Huitzilopochtli would guide them in the form of a blue hummingbird. He would take them to a prophecized island at the center of a great lake. There, a golden eagle would land upon a prickly-pear cactus, the tenochca, and that would mark where the Aztecs would settle. When the Aztecs witnessed this moment in 1325, they founded the capital of Tenochtitlan and renamed themselves the Mexica. (Because of the geographical breadth of these works, I prefer to continue using "Aztec" instead to "Mexica" to avoid confusion.) NMAH
Felipe R. Solís Olguín has made the provocative argument that the Aztecs' monumental sculpture was used to reinforce some of the ideologies of the Empire. Certain stances, postures, and attributes in the anthropomorphic sculptures, for example, are exclusive to each gender. These sculptures could then idealize the Aztec male and female according to the state ideology. This standing male sculpture has a smooth yet somewhat rigid expression. NMAH
One of the finest known examples of obsidian carving in the world. The bulge in the monkey's belly may suggest that she is pregnant. The rim is circumscribed by her slender tail, which she grabs with both hands. NMAH
Obsidian was also used to make jewelry, like the two large ear spools shown in this collection from L.A. These pieces are not Aztec in the sense of the Mexica, but they come from nearby Mexico State, during the same time period as the height of the Aztec Empire. The other pieces here are a blade and a few small needles. Obsidian can be hewn into one of the sharpest natural minerals. LA
Forget the Botticelli rendering of the young lady in the clam. This was the Mesoamerican Venus - replete with large fangs, plated eyes, sharp weapons and a skeletal body. As with the Toltecs, the god was called Tlauixcalpantecuhtli, Lord of the House of Dawn. As the morning star, the House of Dawn carried the heart of the Feathered Serpent. As the evening star, it housed the heart of his distorted twin Xolotl. NMAH
Stone sculpture of Xochipilli, the Flowery Prince, who was both a vegetation god and a god of youthful beauty. This sculpture is one of the most emotionally expressive carvings of an Aztec god. Various kinds of flower prints are carved over his skin, as shown on the left, and many of them have in fact been identified as flowers of hallucinogenic plants. Xochipilli's image can thus integrate the colors of both the flowering plants and their visionary abilities. NMAH
The Olmecs and Maya were the first to stress the jaguar as a lord of the night, the prowler and the guardian. The Aztecs built upon this idea when they assembled the Jaguar Warriors. The eagle was the greatest predator of the day. The jaguar was that of the night. This piece is the logical counterpart to the Eagle Bowl. NMAH
This bowl from the Central Mexico Valley is literally surrounded with images that all point to its use as an offertory bowl for blood sacrifice. On the left is a picture from the side of this bowl, showing the skull reliefs winding around the circumference. At right is a view of the interior, which shows an image of blood-stained bone awls, used for piercing the tongue, ears, or other organs. These awls are set into a bundle of thorny stems, another image commonly associated with bloodletting. LA
Detail of a relief from the imposingly large Stone of Tizoc. The Stone is a short but extremely wide cylinder, whose entire circumference is marked with reliefs of the war lord Tizoc in various wardrobes, and in each battle he stands on the left and holds his prisoner by the hair. Because of his impressive military career, he was elected by the Aztec noble council as emperor, but this would become one of the shortest reigns of any Aztec emperor, from 1481 to 1486. NMAH
An inferior eye for military command was one of the main reasons Tizoc had such a weak office. Dissension in the administration led to the eventual assassination of this emperor, but the great Stone remains. The lid to this monument has spokes which represent the sun's rays, and the central hole is open as a receptacle. If this structure served as a temalacatl, the hole at center would have supported a small pole that fastened to a war prisoner's ankle as he fought in gladiatorial combat. NMAH
The élite warrior of the night. This is not quite the counterpart to the nearly life-sized ceramic eagle warrior at the Great Temple. In fact, it is not much less than two feet tall and made from a single piece of stone. The image has shown some wear around the face, but the jaguar-shaped helmet is still visible. NMAH
While perhaps not as grand as the standing eagle warrior figures from the Great Temple, this ceramic urn is richly painted and embellished. The face appears to be skeletal, but it still carries jewelry like the nose piece and the small, hand-shaped earring pendants. This piece was crafted in the beginning of the sixteenth century. NMAH
