MEXICAN CIVILIZATION

Mesoamerica was one of six cradles of civilization

worldwide.

Mexico's historical attractions - from the ancient ruins of the

Olmecs, Maya, and Aztec, to the train routes used by the
brash and legendary Pancho Villa - rank second only to the
beaches of Cancun - and Alcapulco as the prime reason people come. The reason for this is simple:
the tale of Mexico's past, accompanied by an overwhelming amount of physical remains, is as
romantic, blood-curling, dramatic, and complex as it gets.

Somewhere around 1000 BC, the first of Mexico's

ancient civilizations, the Olmecs, established
themselves in what are now the states of Veracruz and
Tabasco. They worshipped a jaguar God
, built cities, constructed massive stone head carvings,
and spread throughout central and southern Mexico
until their civilization mysteriously vanished around 400
BC. Though the Olmecs left behind relatively few
artifacts, their influence on later cultures was profound.
In their wake came the Teotihuacan, the Zapotecs and
Mixtecs of Monte Alban, the Maya of Yucatan, the
Toltecs, Aztecs, and dozens of smaller, citied groups
(Aztec, Chupicuaro, Colima, Maya, Mixtec, Nayarit,
Olmec, Tarascan, Teotihuacan, Toltec, Totonac,
Zapotec). To balance the spiritual and earthly realms
and appease their pantheons of gods, many of these
civilizations practiced human sacrifice, a fact that often
overshadows their great achievements in the realms of
mathematics, astronomy, architecture, textile weaving, art, and pottery. The Maya, for example, were
so advanced in mathematics and astronomy that their calendar was the world's most accurate until
this century. They could also predict solar and lunar eclipses.

Preclassic Era or Formative Period

1800 BCE200 CE
During the Preclassic Era, or Formative Period, large-scale ceremonial architecture, writing, cities,
and states developed. Many of the distinctive elements of Mesoamerican civilization can be traced
back to this period, including the dominance of corn, the building of pyramids, human sacrifice,
jaguar-worship, the complex calendar, and many of the gods.
The Olmec civilization developed and flourished at such sites as La Venta and San Lorenzo
Tenochtitln. The Zapotec civilization arose in the Valley of Oaxaca, the Teotihuacan civilization
arose in the Valley of Mexico, and the Maya civilization began to develop in the Mirador Basin (in
modern-day Guatemala) and the Epi-Olmec culture in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (in modern-day
Chiapas), later expanding into Guatemala and the Yucatn Peninsula

Classic Era
2001000 CE
The Classic Era was dominated by numerous independent city-states in the Maya region and also
featured the beginnings of political unity in central Mexico and the Yucatn. Regional differences
between cultures grew more manifest. The city-state of Teotihuacan dominated the Valley of Mexico
until the early 8th century, but we know little of the political structure of the region because the
Teotihuacanos left no written records. The city-state of Monte Albn dominated the Valley of Oaxaca
until the late Classic, leaving limited records in their mostly undeciphered script. Highly sophisticated
arts such as stuccowork, architecture, sculptural reliefs, mural painting, pottery, and lapidary
developed and spread during the Classic era.
In the Maya region, under considerable military influence by Teotihuacan after the "arrival" of Siyaj
K'ak' in 378 CE, numerous city states such as Tikal, Uaxactun, Calakmul, Copn, Quirigua,
Palenque, Cob, and Caracol reached their zeniths. Each of these polities was generally
independent, although they often formed alliances and sometimes became vassal states of each
other. The main conflict during this period was between Tikal and Calakmul, who fought a series of
wars over the course of more than half a millennium. Each of these states declined during the
Terminal Classic and were eventually abandoned.
In the early 20th century, the term "Old Empire" was sometimes given to this era of Maya civilization
in an analogy to Ancient Egypt; the term is now considered inaccurate and has long been out of use
by serious writers on the subject

Postclassic Era
10001697
In the Postclassic Era many of the great nations and cities of the Classic Era collapsed, although
some continued, such as in Oaxaca, Cholula, and the Maya of Yucatn, such as at Chichen Itza and
Uxmal. This is sometimes seen as a period of increased chaos and warfare.
The Postclassic is often viewed as a period of cultural decline. However, it was a time of
technological advancement in architecture, engineering, and weaponry. Metallurgy (introduced c.
800) came into use for jewelry and some tools, with new alloys and techniques being developed in a
few centuries. The Postclassic was a period of rapid movement and population growth especially
in Central Mexico post-1200 and of experimentation in governance. For instance, in Yucatn, 'dual
rulership' apparently replaced the more theocratic governments of Classic times, whilst oligarchic
councils operated in much of Central Mexico. Likewise, it appears that the wealthy pochteca
(merchant class) and military orders became more powerful than was apparently the case in Classic
times. This afforded some Mesoamericans a degree of social mobility.
The Toltec for a time dominated central Mexico in the 9th10th century, then collapsed. The northern
Maya were for a time united under Mayapan, and Oaxaca was briefly united by Mixtec rulers in the
11th12th centuries.
The Aztec Empire arose in the early 15th century and appeared to be on a path to asserting
dominance over the Valley of Mexico region not seen since Teotihuacan. Spain was the first
European power to contact Mesoamerica, however, and its conquistadores and a large number of
native allies conquered the Aztecs.
By the 15th century, the Mayan 'revival' in Yucatn and southern Guatemala and the flourishing of
Aztec imperialism evidently enabled a renaissance of fine arts and science. Examples include the
'Pueblan-Mexica' style in pottery, codex illumination, and goldwork, the flourishing of Nahua poetry,
and the botanical institutes established by the Aztec elite.
Arguably, the Post-Classic continued until the conquest of Tayasal, the last independent native state
of Mesoamerica, in 1697.

Mexican Civilization Timeline

BCE
1500 B.C.
The first major Mesoamerican civilization
the Olmecsgrows out of the early
villages, beginning in the southern region
of what is now Mexico. This period is
marked by the effective cultivation of
crops such as corn (maize), beans, chile
peppers and cotton; the emergence of
pottery, fine art and graphic symbols used
to record Olmec history, society and
culture; and the establishment of larger
cities such as San Lorenzo (about 1200-900 B.C.) and La Venta (about 900-400 B.C.).
600 B.C.
In the late Formative (or Pre-Classic) period, Olmec hegemony gives way to a number of other
regional groups, including the Maya, Zapotec, Totonac, and Teotihuacn civilizations, all of which
share a common Olmec heritage.
 250
The Mayan civilization, centered in
the Yucatn peninsula, becomes one of the
most dominant of the areas regional groups,
reaching its peak around the sixth century A.D.,
during the Classic period of Mesoamerican
history. The Mayas excelled at pottery,
hieroglyph writing, calendar-making and
mathematics, and left an astonishing amount of great architecture; the ruins can still be seen today.
By 600 A.D., the Mayan alliance with the Teotihuacn, a commercially advanced society in north-
central Mexico, had spread its influence over much of Mesoamerica.
100 - The Mayans build the first pyramids. Mesoamerican pyramids or pyramid-shaped structures
form a prominent part of ancient Mesoamerican architecture. Although similar in shape or form, these
structures bear only a very weak architectural resemblance to Egyptian pyramids. The Mesoamerican
examples are usually step pyramids with temples on top more akin to the ziggurats of Mesopotamia
than to the pyramids of Ancient Egypt. The Mesoamerican region's largest pyramid by volume
indeed, the largest in the world by volume is the Great Pyramid of Cholula, in the Mexican state of
Puebla. Some classic Mesoamerican pyramids are littered with stories about the Hero Twins, the
feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl, Mesoamerican creation myths, ritualistic sacrifice, etc. written in the
form of hieroglyphs on the rises of the steps of the pyramids, on the walls, and on the sculptures
contained within

600
With Teotihuacn and Mayan dominance beginning to wane, a number of upstart states begin to
compete for power. The warlike Toltec, who migrated from north of Teotihuacn, become the most
successful, establishing their empire in the central valley of Mexico by the 10th century. The rise of
the Toltecs, who used their powerful armies to subjugate neighboring societies, is said to have
marked the beginning of militarism in Mesoamerican society.
Colossal atlantids, pyramid B, Toltec, Tula, Mexico, ca. 900-1180 CE. Stone, each 16' high. The
colossal statue-columns of Tula portraying warriors armed with darts and spear-throwers reflect the
military regime of the Toltecs, whose arrival in central Mexico coincided with the decline of the Maya.
900
The early Post-Classic period begins with the dominant Toltecs headquartered in their capital of Tula
(also known as Tollan). Over the next 300 years, internal conflict combined with the influx of new
invaders from the north weaken Toltec civilization, until by 1200 (the late Post-Classic period) the
Toltecs are vanquished by the Chichimecha,

a collection of rugged tribes of undetermined origin (probably near Mexicos northern frontier) who
claim the great Toltec cities as their own.
CE 1000 - The southern cities of the Mayan culture begin to collapse.
RISE AND FALL OF THE AZTECS

1325
The nomadic Chichimecha tribe of the Mexica, more commonly known as the Aztecs, arrive in
Mexicos central valley, then called the Valley of Anahuac, after a long migration from their northern
homeland. Following the prophecy of one of their gods, Huitzilopochtli, they found a settlement,
Tenochtitln, on the marshy land near Lake Texcoco. By the early 15th century, the Aztecs and their
first emperor, Itzcoatl, form a three-way alliance with the city-states of Texcoco and Tlatelco (now
Tacuba) and establish joint control over the region.
Diego Rivera mural of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan

1428
Montezuma I becomes leader of the Aztecs and expands the
Aztec Empire. The mighty Aztecs conquer their chief rivals in
the city of Azcapotzalco and emerge as the dominant force in
central Mexico. They develop an intricate social, political,
religious and commercial organization, with an economy
driven by bustling markets such as Tenochtitlns Tlatelolco,
visited by some 50,000 people on major market days. Early
forms of currency include cacao beans and lengths of woven
cloth. The Aztec civilization is also highly developed socially,
intellectually and artistically. Their language, Nahuatl, is the
dominant language in central Mexico by mid-1350s, although
numerous other languages are spoken. Distinctive examples
of the Aztec artistic style include exquisitely feathered
tapestries, headdresses and other attire; finely worked
ceramics; gold, silver and copperware; and precious stones,
particularly jade and turquoise. In the great cities of the Aztec
empire, magnificent temples and palaces and imposing stone
statues decorating most street corners, plazas and landmarks
all embody the civilizations unfailing devotion to its many
gods.
February 1517

Francisco Hernndez de Crdoba, the first European to visit Mexican territory, arrives in the Yucatn
from Cuba with three ships and about 100 men. Members of the local native population clash with
the Spanish explorers, killing some 50 of them and capturing several more. Crdobas reports on his
return to Cuba prompt the Spanish governor there, Diego Velsquez, to send a larger force back to
Mexico, under the command of Hernn Corts. Like most of the first European visitors to the New
World, Corts is driven by the desire to find a route to Asia and its immense riches in spices and
other resources.
February 1519
Corts sets sail from Cuba with 11 ships, more than 450 soldiers and a large number of supplies,
including 16 horses. Upon arriving in Yucatn, the Spaniards take control of the town of Tabasco,
where they begin learning of the great Aztec civilization, now ruled by Moctezuma II. Defying the
authority of Velasquz, Corts founds the city of Veracruz, on the Gulf of Mexico directly east of
Mexico City. With an entourage of 400 (including several captive members of the native population,
notably a woman known as Malinche, who serves as a translator and becomes Cortss mistress)
Corts begins his famous march inward into Mexico, using the strength of his forces to form an
important alliance with the Tlascalans, enemies of the Aztecs.
November 1519
Corts and his men arrive in Tenochtitln; they are welcomed as honored guests by Moctezuma and
his people due to the Spaniards resemblance to Quetzalcoatl, a legendary light-skinned god-king
whose return was prophesied in Aztec legend. Taking Moctezuma hostage, Corts is able to gain
control of Tenochtitln.

August 13, 1521

After a bloody series of conflictsinvolving the Aztecs, the Tlascalans and other native allies of the
Spaniards, and a Spanish force sent by Velsquez to contain CortsCorts finally defeats the
forces of Montezumas nephew, Cuauhtmoc (who became emperor after his uncle was killed in
1520) to complete his conquest of Tenochtitln. His victory marks the fall of the once-mighty Aztec
empire. Corts razes the Aztec capital and builds Mexico City on its ruins; it quickly becomes the
premier European center in the New World.
Mesoamerica On The Eve Of The Conquest

Moctezuma Xocoyotzin was the ninth tlatoani or ruler of Tenochtitlan, reigning from 1502 to 1520.
The first contact between indigenous civilizations of Mesoamerica and Europeans took place during
his reign, and he was killed during the initial stages of the Spanish conquest of Mexico, when
Conquistador Hernn Corts and his men fought to escape from the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan.

The first mainland explorations were followed by a phase of inland expeditions and conquest. The
Spanish crown extended the Reconquista effort, completed in Spain in 1492, to non-Catholic people
in new territories. In 1502 on the coast of present-day Colombia, near the Gulf of Urab, Spanish
explorers led by Vasco Nez de Balboa explored and conquered the area near the Atrato River.

The conquest was of the Chibcha-speaking nations, mainly the Muisca and Tairona indigenous
people that lived here. The Spanish founded San Sebastian de Uraba in 1509abandoned within the
year, and in 1510 the first permanent Spanish mainland settlement in America, Santa Mara la
Antigua del Darin.

The first Europeans to arrive in what is modern day Mexico were the survivors of a Spanish
shipwreck in 1511. Only two managed to survive Gernimo de Aguilar and Gonzalo Guerrero until
further contact was made with Spanish explorers years later. On 8 February 1517 an expedition led
by Francisco Hernndez de Crdoba left the harbor of Santiago de Cuba to explore the shores of
southern Mexico.

During the course of this expedition many of Hernndez' men were killed, most during a battle near
the town of Champotn against a Maya army. He himself was injured, and died a few days shortly
after his return to Cuba. This was the Europeans' first encounter with an advanced civilization in the
Americas, with solidly built buildings and a complex social organization which they recognized as
being comparable to those of the Old World. Hernn Corts led a new expedition to Mexico landing
ashore at present day Veracruz on 22 April 1519, a date which marks the beginning of 300 years of
Spanish hegemony over the region.

In general the 'Spanish conquest of Mexico' denotes the conquest of the central region of
Mesoamerica where the Aztec Empire was based. The fall of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan in 1521
was a decisive event, but Spaniards conquered other regions of Mexico, such as Yucatn, extended
long after Spaniards consolidated control of central Mexico. The Spanish conquest of Yucatn is the
much longer campaign, from 1551 to 1697, against the Maya peoples of the Maya civilization in the
Yucatn Peninsula of present-day Mexico and northern Central America.

Analysis Of Defeat

The Alliance ambushed indigenous ceremonies, such as during The Feast of Huitzilopochtli, which
allowed the superior Spanish conquerors to avoid fighting the best Aztec warriors in direct armed
battle.

Smallpox (Variola major and Variola minor) began to spread in Mesoamerica immediately after the
arrival of Europeans. The indigenous peoples, who had no immunity to it, eventually died in the
millions. A third of all the natives of the Valley of Mexico succumbed to it within six months of
Spaniards arrival.

Aftermath Of The Conquest

Tenochtitlan, The Aztecs, And The Tlaxcalteca

Tenochtitlan was almost completely destroyed by fire and cannon shots. Those Aztecs who survived
were forbidden to live in the city and the surrounding isles, and they went to live in Tlatelolco.

Corts imprisoned the royal families of the valley. To prevent another revolt, he personally tortured
and killed Cuauhtmoc, the last Aztec Emperor; Coanacoch, the King of Texcoco, and
Tetlepanquetzal, King of Tlacopan.

The Spanish had no intention to turn over Tenochtitlan to the Tlaxcalteca. While Tlaxcalteca troops
continued to help the Spaniards, and Tlaxcala received better treatment than other indigenous
nations, the Spanish eventually disowned the treaty. Forty years after the conquest, the Tlaxcalteca
had to pay the same tribute as any other indigenous community.

Political. Apparently, Cortes favored maintaining the political structure of the Aztecs, with minor
changes.[citation needed]
Religious. Corts immediately banned human sacrifice throughout the conquered empire. In 1524,
he requested the Spanish king to send friars from the mendicant orders, particularly the
Franciscan, Dominican, and Augustinian, to convert the indigenous to Christianity. This has often
been called the "spiritual conquest of Mexico". Christian evangelization began in the early-1520s
and continued into the 1560s. Many of the mendicant friars, especially the Franciscans and
Dominicans, learned the native languages and recorded aspects of native culture, providing a
principal source for our knowledge about them. One of the first 12 Franciscans to come to Mexico,
Fray Toribio de Benavente Motolinia recorded in Spanish observations of the indigenous.
Important Franciscans engaged in collecting and preparing native language materials, especially
in Nahuatl are fray Alonso de Molina and fray Bernardino de Sahagn. By 1560, more than 800
 clergy were working to convert Indians in New Spain. By 1580, the number grew to 1,500 and by
1650, to 3,000.
Economics. The Spanish colonizers introduced the encomienda system of forced labor, which in
central Mexico built on indigenous traditions of rendering tribute and labor to rulers in their own
communities and local rulers rendering tribute to higher authorities. Individual Spaniards were
awarded the tribute and labor or particular indigenous communities, with that population paying
tribute and performing labor locally. Indigenous communities were pressed for labor services and
tribute, but were not enslaved. Their rulers remained indigenous elites, who retained their status
under colonial rule and were useful intermediaries. The Spanish also used forced labor, often
outright slavery, in mining.

Olmecs (1400400 BC)

The Olmec first appeared along the Atlantic coast (in what is now the state of Tabasco) in the period
1500900 BC.

The Olmecs are thought to be the one of the oldest civilization in Mexico, since they began before
1000BC. The Olmecs were the first organized civilization in Mexico, relied heavily on agriculture and
were the first to introduce ritual bloodletting. We still don't know how Olmec society was structured but
it is believed to have been hierarchical. One clue to this are the huge stone heads that they left
behind which are believed to be those of the heads of Olmec rulers. Although there is much that it still
not known about the Olmecs, such as how and why their tribe disappeared around 300BC. The
Olmec people and culture did not completely disappear; many other tribes incorporated aspects of
the Olmec culture into their own including the Aztecs more than 1000 years later.
The Olmecs lived along the Gulf Coast of Mexico, in the area that is now the states of Tabasco
and Veracruz. This group is sometimes called the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica because it was
the first group to develop certain cultural traits that were adopted and further developed by other
groups. The Olmecs are known for the giant stone heads found in the area which probably
represented rulers

Bloodletting And Sacrifice

The inert were-jaguar baby held by the central figure is seen by some as an indication of child
sacrifice. In contrast, its sides show bas-reliefs of humans holding quite lively were-jaguar babies.
Although the archaeological record does not include explicit representation of Olmec bloodletting,
researchers have found other evidence that the Olmec ritually practiced it. For example, numerous
natural and ceramic stingray spikes and maguey thorns have been found at Olmec sites, and certain
artifacts have been identified as bloodletters.
The argument that the Olmec instituted human sacrifice is significantly more speculative. No Olmec
or Olmec-influenced sacrificial artifacts have yet been discovered; no Olmec or Olmec-influenced
artwork unambiguously shows sacrificial victims (as do the danzante figures of Monte Albn) or
scenes of human sacrifice (such as can be seen in the famous ballcourt mural from El Tajin).
At the El Manat site, disarticulated skulls and femurs, as well as the complete skeletons of newborn
or unborn children, have been discovered amidst the other offerings, leading to speculation
concerning infant sacrifice. Scholars have not determined how the infants met their deaths. Some
authors have associated infant sacrifice with Olmec ritual art showing limp were-jaguar babies, most
famously in La Venta's Altar 5 (on the right) or Las Limas figure.
Etymology

The name "Olmec" means "rubber people" in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec, and was the Aztec
name for the people who lived in the Gulf Lowlands in the 15th and 16th centuries, some 2000 years
after the Olmec culture died out. The term "rubber people" refers to the ancient practice, spanning
from ancient Olmecs to Aztecs, of extracting latex from Castilla elastica, a rubber tree in the area.
The juice of a local vine, Ipomoea alba, was then mixed with this latex to create rubber as early as
1600 BCE.

Literature

Olmec Writing: The oldest in the Western Hemisphere

the discovery of the Cascajal Block, an ancient slab of writing

which is thought to be the oldest known writing system in the
Western Hemisphere. The block features linear arrangements
of certain characters that appear to be ancient depictions of
tribal objects, such as animals, insects, tools and food
(especially corn). A team of anthropological researchers
announced the find in the journal Science last month.
Determined to be from the Olmec civilization, the block dates
to the first millennia BC according to the lead researchers and
was found in Veracruz, Mexico.
The intrigue of the block lies in the writing system, a hitherto
unknown way of communication for the Olmecs of ancient
Mesoamerica.

Religion

Rulers, Priests, And Shamans

Olmec religious activities were performed by a combination of rulers, full-time priests, and shamans.
The rulers seem to have been the most important religious figures, with their links to the Olmec
deities or supernaturals providing legitimacy for their rule. There is also considerable evidence for
shamans in the Olmec archaeological record, particularly in the so-called "transformation figures".
 Olmec Dragon (God I)

Also known as the Earth Monster, the Olmec Dragon has

flame eyebrows, a bulbous nose, and bifurcated tongue.
When viewed from the front, the Olmec Dragon has trough-
shaped eyes; when viewed in profile, the eyes are L-
shaped. Fangs are prominent, often rendered as an
upside-down U-shaped bracket. With the Bird Monster, the
Olmec Dragon is one of the most commonly depicted
supernaturals.

Maize deity (God II)

Another probable supernatural is identified by the plants

sprouting from its cleft head. A carved celt from Veracruz
shows a representation of God II, or the Maize God, growing corn from his cleft, and also shows this
god with the snarling face associated with the jaguar. This deity is
rarely shown with a full body.

Rain Spirit and Were-jaguar

(God IV)

There is considerable
disagreement between researchers
whether the Rain Spirit and were-
jaguar are one distinct or two
separate supernaturals.
Christopher Pool, Anatole
Pohorilenko, and Miller & Taube
each equate the were-jaguar with
the Rain Deity, while Joralemon finds them to be two separate
supernaturals. Joralemon states that the Olmec rain spirit "is based
on were-jaguar features", but is not the were-jaguar per se. More
recent scholarship by Carolyn Tate questions the existence of
"were-jaguar" (a fantastical concept coined soon after the release of
the Were-Wolf in London) imagery and instead argues for the centrality of embryo-corn kernel
iconography within Olmec iconography.
In a later paper, Taube proposed that the Rain Spirit was instead the seed phase version of the Maize
God.

Feathered Serpent (God VII)

Designated God VII by Scott Pelly,

the feathered (or plumed) serpent
depicted throughout Mesoamerica
first appears in Olmec times,
although there is some disagreement
concerning its importance to the
Olmec. The Feathered Serpent
appears on La Venta Stele 19
(above) and within a Juxtlahuaca
cave painting (see this Commons
photo), locations hundreds of miles
apart.

Fish or Shark Monster (God VIII)

Most often recognized by its shark tooth, the head of the monster also features a crescent-shaped
eye, and a small lower jaw.[24] When depicted in its full-body form, such as on San Lorenzo
Monument 58 or on the Young Lord figurine, the anthropomorphic Fish Monster also displays crossed
bands, a dorsal fin, a split tail.
Banded-eye God (God VI)

This enigmatic deity is named for the narrow band that runs along the side of its face through its
almond-shaped eye with its round iris. Like many other supernaturals, the Banded-eye God has a
cleft head and a downturned mouth. Unlike others, the Banded-eye God is only known from its profile
- these renditions are generally concentrated on bowls from the Valley of Mexico (as shown on left),
although the Banded-eye God is one of the five supernaturals shown on Las Limas Monument 1 from
the Olmec heartland.

Rather than a distinct supernatural in its own right, however, Taube finds God VI to be yet another
aspect of the Maize God.

Ballgame

The Mesoamerican ballgame was a sport with ritual associations played since 1400 BC by the pre-
Columbian peoples of Ancient Mesoamerica. The sport had different versions in different places
during the millennia, and a newer more modern version of the game, ulama, is still played in a few
places by the indigenous population.

The rules of the game are not known, but judging from its descendant, ulama, they were probably
similar to racquetball, where the aim is to keep the ball in play. The stone ballcourt goals are a late
addition to the game.

In the most common theory of the game, the players struck the ball with their hips, although some
versions allowed the use of forearms, rackets, bats, or handstones. The ball was made of solid rubber
and weighed as much as 4 kg (9 lbs), and sizes differed greatly over time or according to the version
played.
The game had important ritual aspects, and major formal ballgames were held as ritual events. Late
in the history of the game, some cultures occasionally seem to have combined competitions with
religious human sacrifice. The sport was also played casually for recreation by children and may have
been played by women as well

Mayans

Etymology
Mayan cultural characteristics, such as the rise of the ahau, or king, can be traced from 300 BC
onwards. During the centuries preceding the classical period, Mayan kingdoms sprang up in an area
stretching from the Pacific coasts of southern Mexico and Guatemala to the northern Yucatn
Peninsula. The egalitarian Mayan society of pre-royal centuries gradually gave way to a society
controlled by a wealthy elite that began building large ceremonial temples and complexes.
The earliest known long-count date, 199 AD, heralds the classic period, during which the Mayan
kingdoms supported a population numbering in the millions. Tikal, the largest of the kingdoms, alone
had 500,000 inhabitants, though the average population of a kingdom was much smaller
somewhere under 50,000 people
The Maya civilization started around 2000 BC although where precisely, is not known. It is generally
believed that the first settlements were along the Pacific coast in present-day Chiapas State. What is
known is that this empire extended from the the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico all the way south to El
Salvador. Maya civilization has 4 clearly marked periods in time starting with the Preclassic Period
that dates from the beginning of Maya civilization to around 200 AD. The next period is the Classic
(AD 250-900) followed by a Collapse and large scale abandonment of the cities. Finally the
Postclassic period (from the 10th to the 16th century) encompasses the decline of Maya civilization
and ultimate surrender to the Spanish conquistadores.
The Maya were a hierarchical people that were comprised of city-states with rulers pertaining to each
one. Even though trade routes were established between cities, and relations were fluid between
cities, warfare appears to have been common between them. Often, this warfare is linked to political
control and capturing resources and as populations increased so did the level of violence. No one
knows why Maya society collapsed at the end of the first millennium, some think it is due to
overpopulation, others think a drought is responsible but one certainty is that it was a combination of
environmental and non-environmental factors that caused this collapse and abandonment of many
cities.
While many great cities would vanish, in the Yucatan some cities would be spared and continue to
flourish like Chichn-Itz. These cities would remain to greet the Spanish conquistadores in the
16th century. One last note regarding the Maya is that they were supremely advanced for their time,
sometimes outshining their European counterparts in Science and Math. We mustn't forget that the
they were using the zero 800 years before Europeans and the calendar they employed remains
equally valid today as it did 2000 years ago.
The result of the combination of indigenous and Hispanic cultures over hundreds of years has
resulted in much of the Mexican population being of mestizo (mixed) race, but there are still areas
where native peoples have mixed little with outsiders even today. Nowadays the Mexican government
strives to honor all races and cultures, particularly those of the indigenous tribes which still exist but
often times remain out of sight.

Politics

Classic period rule was centred on the concept of the "divine king", who acted as a mediator between
mortals and the supernatural realm. Kingship was patrilineal, and power would normally pass to the
eldest son. A prospective king was also expected to be a successful war leader. Maya politics was
dominated by a closed system of patronage, although the exact political make-up of a kingdom varied
from city-state to city-state. By the Late Classic, the aristocracy had greatly increased, resulting in the
corresponding reduction in the exclusive power of the divine king. The Maya civilization developed
highly sophisticated artforms, and the Maya created art using both perishable and non-perishable
materials, including wood, jade, obsidian, ceramics, sculpted stone monuments, stucco, and finely
painted murals.

King and court

Classic Maya rule was centred in a royal culture that was displayed
in all areas of Classic Maya art. The king was the supreme ruler
and held a semi-divine status that made him the mediator between
the mortal realm and that of the gods. From very early times, kings
were specifically identified with the young maize god, whose gift of
maize was the basis of Mesoamerican civilization. Maya royal
succession was patrilineal, and royal power only passed to queens
when doing otherwise would result in the extinction of the dynasty.
Typically, power was passed to the eldest son. A young prince was
called a ch'ok ("youth"), although this word later came to refer to
nobility in general. The royal heir was called b'aah ch'ok ("head
youth"). Various points in the young prince's childhood were
marked by ritual; the most important was a bloodletting ceremony
at age five or six years. Although being of the royal bloodline was
of utmost importance, the heir also had to be a successful war
leader, as demonstrated by taking of captives. The enthronement of a new king was a highly
elaborate ceremony, involving a series of separate acts that included enthronement upon a jaguar-
skin cushion, human sacrifice, and receiving the symbols of royal power, such as a headband bearing
a jade representation of the so-called "jester god", an elaborate headdress adorned with quetzal
feathers, and a sceptre representing the god K'awiil.

Trade

Trade was a key component of Maya society, and in the development of

the Maya civilization. The cities that grew to become the most important
usually controlled access to vital trade goods, or portage routes. Cities
such as Kaminaljuyu and Q'umarkaj in the Guatemalan Highlands, and
Chalchuapa in El Salvador, variously controlled access to the sources of
obsidian at different points in Maya history. The most important cities in
the northern Yucatn Peninsula controlled access to the sources of salt.
In the Postclassic, the Maya engaged in a flourishing slave trade with
wider Mesoamerica

Art

Jade funerary mask of king K'inich Janaab' Pakal

Maya art is essentially the art of the royal court. It is almost exclusively concerned with the Maya elite
and their world. Maya art was crafted from both perishable and non-perishable materials, and served
to link the Maya to their ancestors. Although surviving Maya art represents only a small proportion of
the art that the Maya created, it represents a wider variety of subjects than any other art tradition in
the Americas. Maya art has many regional styles, and is unique in the ancient Americas in bearing
narrative text.The finest surviving Maya art dates to the Late Classic period.

The Maya exhibited a preference for the colour green or blue-green, and used the same word for the
colours blue and green. Correspondingly, they placed high value on apple-green jade, and other
greenstones, associating them with the sun-god K'inich Ajau

PRINCIPAL CONSTRUCTION TYPES

The great cities of the Maya civilization were composed of pyramid temples, palaces, ballcourts,
sacbeob (causeways), patios and plazas. Some cities also possessed extensive hydraulic systems or
defensive walls. The exteriors of most buildings were painted, either in one or multiple colours, or with
imagery. Many buildings were adorned with sculpture or painted stucco reliefs.

Palaces and acropoleis

Terminal Classic palace complex at Sayil, in northern Yucatn

These complexes were usually located in the site core, beside a principal plaza. Maya palaces
consisted of a platform supporting a multiroom range structure. The term acropolis, in a Maya
context, refers to a complex of structures built upon platforms of varying height. Palaces and
acropoleis were essentially elite residential compounds. They generally extended horizontally as
opposed to the towering Maya pyramids, and often had restricted access. Some structures in Maya
acropoleis supported roof combs. Rooms often had stone benches, used for sleeping, and holes
indicate where curtains once hung. Large palaces, such as at Palenque, could be fitted with a water
supply, and sweat baths were often found within the complex, or nearby. During the Early Classic,
rulers were sometimes buried underneath the acropolis complex.Some rooms in palaces were true
throne rooms; in the royal palace of Palenque there were a number of throne rooms that were used
for important events, including the inauguration of new kings. Palaces are usually arranged around
one or more courtyards, with their faades facing inwards; some examples are adorned with
sculpture. Some palaces possess associated hieroglyphic descriptions that identify them as the royal
residences of named rulers. There is abundant evidence that palaces were far more than simple elite
residences, and that a range of courtly activities took place in them, including audiences, formal
receptions, and important rituals.

Pyramids and temples

Temple I, at Tikal, was a funerary temple in honour of king Jasaw Chan K'awiil I.

Temples were sometimes referred to in hieroglyphic texts as k'uh nah, meaning "god's house".
Temples were raised on platforms, most often upon a pyramid. The earliest temples were probably
thatched huts built upon low platforms. By the Late Preclassic period, their walls were of stone, and
the development of the corbel arch allowed stone roofs to replace thatch. By the Classic period,
temple roofs were being topped with roof combs that extended the height of the temple and served as
a foundation for monumental art. The temple shrines contained between one and three rooms, and
were dedicated to important deities. Such a deity might be one of the patron gods of the city, or a
deified ancestor. In general, freestanding pyramids were shrines honouring powerful ancestors.

E-Groups and observatories

The Maya were keen observers of the sun, stars, and planets. E-Groups were a particular
arrangement of temples that were relatively common in the Maya region; they take their names from
Group E at Uaxactun. They consisted of three small structures facing a fourth structure, and were
used to mark the solstices and equinoxes. The earliest examples date to the Preclassic period. The
Lost World complex at Tikal started out as an E-Group built towards the end of the Middle Preclassic.
Due to its nature, the basic layout of an E-Group was constant. A structure was built on the west side
of a plaza; it was usually a radial pyramid with stairways facing the cardinal directions. It faced east
across the plaza to three small temples on the far side. From the west pyramid, the sun was seen to
rise over these temples on the solstices and equinoxes. E-Groups were raised across the central and
southern Maya area for over a millennium; not all were properly aligned as observatories, and their
function may have been symbolic.

As well as E-Groups, the Maya built other structures dedicated to observing the movements of
celestial bodies. Many Maya buildings were aligned with astronomical bodies, including the planet
Venus, and various constellations. The Caracol structure at Chichen Itza was a circular multi-level
edifice, with a conical superstructure. It has slit windows that marked the movements of Venus. At
Copn, a pair of stelae were raised to mark the position of the setting sun at the equinoxes.

Triadic pyramids

Model of a triadic pyramid at Caracol, Belize

Triadic pyramids first appeared in the Preclassic. They consisted of a dominant structure flanked by
two smaller inward-facing buildings, all mounted upon a single basal platform. The largest known
triadic pyramid was built at El Mirador in the Petn Basin; it covers an area six times as large as that
covered by Temple IV, the largest pyramid at Tikal. The three superstructures all have stairways
leading up from the central plaza on top of the basal platform. No securely established forerunners of
Triadic Groups are known, but they may have developed from the eastern range building of E-Group
complexes. The triadic form was the predominant architectural form in the Petn region during the
Late Preclassic. Examples of triadic pyramids are known from as many as 88 archaeological sites. At
Nakbe, there are at least a dozen examples of triadic complexes and the four largest structures in the
city are triadic in nature. At El Mirador there are probably as many as 36 triadic structures. Examples
of the triadic form are even known from Dzibilchaltun in the far north of the Yucatn Peninsula, and
Q'umarkaj in the Highlands of Guatemala. The triadic pyramid remained a popular architectural form
for centuries after the first examples were built; it continued in use into the Classic Period, with later
examples being found at Uaxactun, Caracol, Seibal, Nakum, Tikal and Palenque.The Q'umarkaj
example is the only one that has been dated to the Postclassic Period. The triple-temple form of the
triadic pyramid appears to be related to Maya mythology.

Ballcourts

Postclassic ballcourt at Zaculeu, in the Guatemalan Highlands

The Great Ballcourt of Chichen Itza

The ballcourt is a distinctive pan-Mesoamerican form of architecture. Although the majority of Maya
ballcourts date to the Classic period, the earliest examples appeared around 1000 BC in
northwestern Yucatn, during the Middle Preclassic. By the time of Spanish contact, ballcourts were
only in use in the Guatemalan Highlands, at cities such as Q'umarkaj and Iximche. Throughout Maya
history, ballcourts maintained a characteristic form consisting of an shape, with a central playing
area terminating in two transverse end zones. The central playing area usually measures between 20
and 30 metres (66 and 98 ft) long, and is flanked by two lateral structures that stood up to 3 or 4
metres (9.8 or 13.1 ft) high. The lateral platforms often supported structures that may have held
privileged spectators. The Great Ballcourt at Chichen Itza is the largest in Mesoamerica, measuring
83 metres (272 ft) long by 30 metres (98 ft) wide, with walls standing 8.2 metres (27 ft) high.

Regional architectural styles

Although Maya cities shared many common features, there was considerable variation in architectural
style. Such styles were influenced by locally available construction materials, climate, topography,
and local preferences. In the Late Classic, these local differences developed into distinctive regional
architectural styles.

Central Petn

The central Petn style of architecture is modelled after the great city of Tikal. The style is
characterized by tall pyramids supporting a summit shrine adorned with a roof comb, and accessed
by a single doorway. Additional features are the use of stela-altar pairings, and the decoration of
architectural faades, lintels, and roof combs with relief sculptures of rulers and gods. One of the
finest examples of Central Petn style architecture is Tikal Temple I. Examples of sites in the Central
Petn style include Altun Ha, Calakmul, Holmul, Ixkun, Nakum, Naranjo, and Yaxh.

Puuc

The exemplar of Puuc-style architecture is Uxmal. The style developed in the Puuc Hills of
northwestern Yucatn; during the Terminal Classic it spread beyond this core region across the
northern Yucatn Peninsula. Puuc sites replaced rubble cores with lime cement, resulting in stronger
walls, and also strengthened their corbel arches; this allowed Puuc-style cities to build freestanding
entrance archways. The upper faades of buildings were decorated with precut stones mosaic-
fashion, erected as facing over the core, forming elaborate compositions of long-nosed deities such
as the rain god Chaac and the Principal Bird Deity. The motifs also included geometric patterns,
lattices and spools, possibly influenced by styles from highland Oaxaca, outside the Maya area. In
contrast, the lower faades were left undecorated. Roof combs were relatively uncommon at Puuc
sites.

Chenes

Elaborate Chenes-style faade at Hochob

False pyramids adorn the faade of a Ro Bec palace.

The Chenes style is very similar to the Puuc style, but predates the use of the mosaic faades of the
Puuc region. It featured fully adorned faades on both the upper and lower sections of structures.
Some doorways were surrounded by mosaic masks of monsters representing mountain or sky
deities, identifying the doorways as entrances to the supernatural realm. Some buildings contained
interior stairways that accessed different levels. The Chenes style is most commonly encountered in
the southern portion of the Yucatn Peninsula, although individual buildings in the style can be found
elsewhere in the peninsula. Examples of Chenes sites include Dzibilnocac, Hochob, Santa Rosa
Xtampak, and Tabasqueo.
Ro Bec

The Ro Bec style forms a sub-region of the Chenes style, and also features elements of the Central
Petn style, such as prominent roof combs. Its palaces are distinctive for their false-tower
decorations, lacking interior rooms, with steep, almost vertical, stairways and false doors. These
towers were adorned with deity masks, and were built to impress the viewer, rather than serve any
practical function. Such false towers are only found in the Ro Bec region. Ro Bec sites include
Chicann, Hormiguero, and Xpuhil.

Usumacinta

The Usumacinta style developed in the hilly terrain of the Usumacinta drainage. Cities took
advantage of the hillsides to support their major architecture, as at Palenque and Yaxchilan. Sites
modified corbel vaulting to allow thinner walls and multiple access doors to temples. As in Petn, roof
combs adorned principal structures. Palaces had multiple entrances that used post-and-lintel
entrances rather than corbel vaulting. Many sites erected stelae, but Palenque instead developed
finely sculpted panelling to decorate its buildings.

Language

Before 2000 BC, the Maya spoke a single language, dubbed proto-Mayan by linguists.[271]
Linguistic analysis of reconstructed Proto-Mayan vocabulary suggests that the original Proto-Mayan
homeland was in the western or northern Guatemalan Highlands, although the evidence is not
conclusive. The language of almost all Classic Maya texts over the entire Maya area has been
identified as Ch'olan. By the Postclassic period, Yucatec was also being written in Maya codices
alongside Ch'olan.

Literature

The Maya word B'alam "jaguar" written twice in the Maya script. The first glyph writes the word
logographicaly with the jaguar head standing for the entire word. The second glyph block writes the
word phonetically using the three syllable signs BA, LA and MA.
The Maya writing system (often called hieroglyphs from a superficial resemblance to the Ancient
Egyptian writing) is a logosyllabic writing system, combining a syllabary of phonetic signs
representing syllables with logogram representing entire words.[287][289] Among the writing systems of
the Pre-Columbian New World, Maya script most closely represents the spoken language. At any
one time, no more than around 500 glyphs were in use, some 200 of which (including variations)
were phonetic.
The Maya script was in use up to the arrival of the Europeans, its use peaking during the Classic
Period. In excess of 10,000 individual texts have been recovered, mostly inscribed on stone
monuments, lintels, stelae and ceramics. The Maya also produced texts painted on a form of paper
manufactured from processed tree-bark generally now known by its Nahuatl-language
name amatl used to produce codices.
The Madrid Codex (also known as the Tro-Cortesianus Codex or the Troano Codex), Dresden
Codex, The Paris Codex (also known as the Codex Peresianus and Codex Prez)

Mathematics

Maya numerals on a page of the Postclassic Dresden Codex

Maya numerals
In common with the other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Maya used a base 20 (vigesimal)
system. The bar-and-dot counting system that is the base of Maya numerals was in use in
Mesoamerica by 1000 BC; the Maya adopted it by the Late Preclassic, and added the symbol for
zero.

Calendar
The Maya calendrical system, in common with other Mesoamerican calendars, had its origins in the
Preclassic period. However, it was the Maya that developed the calendar to its maximum
sophistication, recording lunar and solar cycles, eclipses and movements of planets with great
accuracy. In some cases, the Maya calculations were more accurate than equivalent calculations in
the Old World; for example, the Maya solar year was calculated to greater accuracy than the Julian
year. The Maya calendar was intrinsically tied to Maya ritual, and it was central to Maya religious
practices. The calendar combined a non-repeating Long Count with three interlocking cycles, each
measuring a progressively larger period. These were the 260-day tzolk'in, the 365-day haab', and
the 52-year Calendar Round, resulting from the combination of the tzolk'in with the haab'. There
were also additional calendric cycles, such as an 819-day cycle associated with the four quadrants
of Maya cosmology, governed by four different aspects of the god K'awiil.
The basic unit in the Maya calendar was one day, or k'in, and 20 k'in grouped to form a winal. The
next unit, instead of being multiplied by 20, as called for by the vigesimal system, was multiplied by
18 in order to provide a rough approximation of the solar year (hence producing 360 days). This 360-
day year was called a tun. Each succeeding level of multiplication followed the vigesimal system.
Long Count periods
Period Calculation Span Years (approx.)
k'in 1 day 1 day
winal 1 x 20 20 days
tun 18 x 20 360 days 1 year
k'atun 20 x 18 x 20 7,200 days 20 years
bak'tun 20 x 18 x 20 x 20 144,000 days 394 years
piktun 20 x 18 x 20 x 20 x 20 2,880,000 days 7,885 years
kalabtun 20 x 18 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 57,600,000 days 157,700 years
kinchiltun 20 x 18 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 1,152,000,000 days 3,154,004 years
alawtun 20 x 18 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 x 20 23,040,000,000 days 63,080,082 year

Astronomy

Representation of an astronomer from the Madrid Codex

The Maya made meticulous observations of celestial bodies, patiently recording astronomical data
on the movements of the sun, moon, Venus, and the stars. This information was used for divination,
so Maya astronomy was essentially for astrological purposes. Maya astronomy did not serve to
study the universe for scientific reasons, nor was it used to measure the seasons in order to
calculate crop planting. It was rather used by the priesthood to comprehend past cycles of time, and
project them into the future to produce prophecy. The priesthood refined observations and recorded
eclipses of the sun and moon, and movements of Venus and the stars; these were measured
against dated events in the past, on the assumption that similar events would occur in the future
when the same astronomical conditions prevailed.[334]Illustrations in the codices show that priests
made astronomical observations using the naked eye, assisted by crossed sticks as a sighting
device.[335] Analysis of the few remaining Postclassic codices has revealed that, at the time of
European contact, the Maya had recorded eclipse tables, calendars, and astronomical knowledge
that was more accurate at that time than comparable knowledge in Europe.

Human sacrifice

Relief sculpture of a decapitated ballplayer, adorning the Great Ballcourtat Chichen Itza
Blood was viewed as a potent source of nourishment for the Maya deities, and the sacrifice of a
living creature was a powerful blood offering. By extension, the sacrifice of a human life was the
ultimate offering of blood to the gods, and the most important Maya rituals culminated in human
sacrifice. Generally only high status prisoners of war were sacrificed, with lower status captives
being used for labour.

Religion and Deities

Classic period Lintel 25 from Yaxchilan, depicting the Vision Serpent

Postclassic ballcourt marker at Mixco Viejo, depicting Q'uq'umatz carrying Tohil across the sky in his
jaws
The Maya world was populated by a great variety of deities, supernatural entities and sacred forces.
The Maya had such a broad interpretation of what was sacred that identifying distinct deities with
specific functions is inaccurate. The Maya interpretation of deities was intrinsically tied to the
calendar, astronomy, and their cosmovision. The importance of a deity, its characteristics, and its
associations varied according to the movement of celestial bodies. The priestly interpretation of
astronomical records and books was therefore crucial, since the priest would understand which deity
required ritual propitiation, when the correct ceremonies should be performed, and what would be an
appropriate offering. Each deity had four manifestations, associated with the cardinal directions,
each identified with a different colour. They also had a dual day-night/life-death aspect.\
Itzamna was the creator god, but he also embodied the cosmos, and was simultaneously a sun
god; K'inich Ahau, the day sun, was one of his aspects. Maya kings frequently identified themselves
with K'inich Ahau. Itzamna also had a night sun aspect, the Night Jaguar, representing the sun in its
journey through the underworld. The four Pawatuns supported the corners of the mortal realm; in the
heavens, the Bacabs performed the same function. As well as their four main aspects, the Bakabs
had dozens of other aspects that are not well understood. The four Chaacs were storm gods,
controlling thunder, lightning, and the rains. The nine lords of the night each governed one of the
underworld realms. Other important deities included the moon goddess, the maize god, and the Hero
Twins.
The Popol Vuh was written in the Latin script in early colonial times, and was probably transcribed
from a hieroglyphic book by an unknown K'iche' Maya nobleman. It is one of the most outstanding
works of indigenous literature in the Americas. The Popul Vuh recounts the mythical creation of the
world, the legend of the Hero Twins, and the history of the Postclassic K'iche' kingdom. Deities
recorded in the Popul Vuh include Hun Hunahpu, the K'iche' maize god, and a triad of deities led by
the K'iche' patron Tohil, and also including the moon goddess Awilix, and the mountain
god Jacawitz.
In common with other Mesoamerican cultures, the Maya worshipped feathered serpent deities. Such
worship was rare during the Classic period, but by the Postclassic the feathered serpent had spread
to both the Yucatn Peninsula and the Guatemalan Highlands. In Yucatn, the feathered serpent
deity was Kukulkan, among the K'iche' it was Q'uq'umatz. Kukulkan had his origins in the Classic
period War Serpent, Waxaklahun Ubah Kan, and has also been identified as the Postclassic version
of the Vision Serpent of Classic Maya art. Although the cult of Kukulkan had its origins in these
earlier Maya traditions, the worship of Kukulkan was heavily influenced by the Quetzalcoatl cult of
central Mexico. Likewise, Q'uq'umatz had a composite origin, combining the attributes of Mexican
Quetzalcoatl with aspects of the Classic period Itzamna.

Agriculture

Maize was a staple of the Maya diet.

The ancient Maya had diverse and sophisticated methods of food production. It was believed
that shifting cultivation (swidden) agriculture provided most of their food, but it is now thought that
permanent raised fields, terracing, intensive gardening, forest gardens, and managed fallows were
also crucial to supporting the large populations of the Classic period in some areas.

Teotihuacan

Etymology

The name Tethuacn was given by the Nahuatl-speaking Aztecs centuries after the fall of the city
around 550 AD. The term has been glossed as "birthplace of the gods", or "place where gods were
born", reflecting Nahua creation myths that were said to occur in Teotihuacan.

The early history of Teotihuacan is quite mysterious, and the origin of its founders is uncertain.
Around 300 BC, people of the central and southeastern area of Mesoamerica began to gather into
larger settlements. Teotihuacan was the largest urban center of Mesoamerica before the Aztecs,
almost 1000 years prior to their epoch. The city was already in ruins by the time of the Aztecs. For
many years, archaeologists believed it was built by the Toltec.

Decline

Evidence for population decline beginning around the 6th century lends some support to the internal
unrest hypothesis. The decline of Teotihuacan has been correlated to lengthy droughts related to
the climate changes of 535536. This theory of ecological decline is supported by archaeological
remains that show a rise in the percentage of juvenile skeletons with evidence of malnutrition during
the 6th century. Which is why there is different evidence that helps indicate that famine is most likely
one of the more possible reasons for the decline of Teotihuacan. The majority of their food came
from agriculture, they grew things such as maize, bean, amaranth, green tomatoes, and pumpkin.
But their harvest was not nearly sufficient enough to feed a population as big as it is believed lived in
Teotihuacan. This finding does not conflict with either of the above theories, since both increased
warfare and internal unrest can also be effects of a general period of drought and famine. Other
nearby centers such as Cholula, Xochicalco, and Cacaxtla competed to fill the power void left by
Teotihuacan's decline. They may have aligned themselves against Teotihuacan to reduce its
influence and power. The art and architecture at these sites emulate Teotihuacan forms, but also
demonstrate an eclectic mix of motifs and iconography from other parts of Mesoamerica, particularly
the Maya region

Religion

In their landmark 1992 volume, An Illustrated Dictionary of the Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico
and the Maya, Miller and Taube list eight deities:[

The Storm God

The Great Goddess
The Feathered Serpent. An important deity in Teotihuacan; most closely associated with
the Feathered Serpent Pyramid (Temple of the Feathered Serpent).
The Old God
The War Serpent. Taube has differentiated two different serpent deities whose depictions
alternate on the Feathered Serpent Pyramid: the Feathered Serpent and what he calls the
"War Serpent". Other researchers are more skeptical.
The Netted Jaguar
The Pulque God
The Fat God. Known primarily from figurines and so assumed to be related to household
rituals.

Esther Pasztory adds one more:

The Flayed God. Known primarily from figurines and so assumed to be related to household
rituals.
A mural showing what has been identified as the Great Goddess of Teotihuacan

The consensus among scholars is that the primary deity of Teotihuacan was the Great Goddess of
Teotihuacan. The dominant civic architecture is the pyramid. Politics were based on the state
religion; religious leaders were the political leaders.

Teotihuacanos practiced human sacrifice: human bodies and animal sacrifices have been found
during excavations of the pyramids at Teotihuacan. Scholars believe that the people offered human
sacrifices as part of a dedication when buildings were expanded or constructed. The victims were
probably enemy warriors captured in battle and brought to the city for ritual sacrifice to ensure the
city could prosper. Some men were decapitated, some had their hearts removed, others were killed
by being hit several times over the head, and some were buried alive. Animals that were considered
sacred and represented mythical powers and military were also buried alive, imprisoned in cages:
cougars, a wolf, eagles, a falcon, an owl, and even venomous snakes. [

Numerous stone masks have been found at Teotihuacan, and have been generally believed to have
been used during a funerary context, although some scholars call this into question, noting that
masks "do not seem to have come from burials".

Pyramids

The Pyramid of the Sun is the largest building in Teotihuacan, believed to have been constructed
about 200 CE, and one of the largest in Mesoamerica. Found along the Avenue of the Dead, in
between the Pyramid of the Moon and the Ciudadela, and in the shadow of the massive mountain
Cerro Gordo, the pyramid is part of a large complex in the heart of the city.

The Pyramid of the Moon is the second largest pyramid in modern-day San Juan
Teotihuacn, Mexico, after the Pyramid of the Sun. It is located in the western part of the ancient city
of Teotihuacan and mimics the contours of the mountain Cerro Gordo, just north of the site. Some
have called it Tenan, which in Nahuatl, means "mother or protective stone." The Pyramid of the
Moon covers a structure older than the Pyramid of the Sun. The structure existed prior to 200 AD.

The Pyramid's construction between 200 and 250 AD completed the bilateral symmetry of the
temple complex. A slope in front of the staircase gives access to the Avenue of the Dead, a platform
atop the pyramid was used to conduct ceremonies in honor of the Great Goddess of Teotihuacan,
the goddess of water, fertility, the earth, and even creation itself. This platform and the sculpture
found at the pyramid's bottom are thus dedicated to The Great Goddess.

Opposite the Great Goddess's altar is the Plaza of the Moon. The Plaza contains a central altar and
an original construction with internal divisions, consisting of four rectangular and diagonal bodies
that formed what is known as the "Teotihuacan Cross."
The Temple of the Feathered Serpent is the modern-day name for the third largest pyramid
at Teotihuacan, a pre-Columbian site in central Mexico (the term Teotihuacan (or Teotihuacano) is
also used for the whole civilization and cultural complex associated with the site). This structure is
notable partly due to the discovery in the 1980s of more than a hundred possibly sacrificial victims
found buried beneath the structure. The burials, like the structure, are dated to between 150 and 200
CE. The pyramid takes its name from representations of the Mesoamerican "feathered serpent" deity
which covered its sides. These are some of the earliest-known representations of the feathered
serpent, often identified with the much-later Aztec god Quetzalcoatl.[4] The structure is also known as
the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, and the Feathered Serpent Pyramid.

Mesoamerica
Teotihuacan view of the Avenue of the Dead and the Pyramid of the Sun, from the Pyramid of the
Moon. At its peak around 600 CE, Teotihuacan was the sixth-largest city in the world. It featured a
rational grid plan and a two-mile-long main avenue. Its monumental pyramids echo the shapes of
surrounding mountains.
The city is thought to have been established around 100 BCE and continued to be built until about
250 CE. The city may have lasted until sometime between the 7th and 8th centuries CE. At its zenith,
perhaps in the first half of the 1st millennium CE, Teotihuacan was the largest city in the pre-
Columbian Americas. At this time it may have had more than 200,000 inhabitants, placing it among
the largest cities of the world in this period. Teotihuacan was even home to multi-floor apartment
compounds built to accommodate this large population.
The civilization and cultural complex associated with the site is also referred to as Teotihuacan or
Teotihuacano. Although it is a subject of debate whether Teotihuacan was the center of a state
empire, its influence throughout Mesoamerica is well documented; evidence of Teotihuacano
presence can be seen at numerous sites in Veracruz and the Maya region. The Aztecs may have
been influenced by this city. The ethnicity of the inhabitants of Teotihuacan is also a subject of
debate. Possible candidates are the Nahua, Otomi or Totonac ethnic groups. Scholars have also
suggested that Teotihuacan was a multiethnic state.
Toltecs

Etymology

The Toltec culture is an archaeological Mesoamerican culture that dominated a state centered
in Tula, Hidalgo, Mexico in the early post-classic period of Mesoamerican chronology (ca. 9001168
CE). The later Aztec culture saw the Toltecs as their intellectual and cultural predecessors and
described Toltec culture emanating from Tlln [tolan] (Nahuatl for Tula) as the epitome of
civilization; in the Nahuatl language the word Tltcatl [toltekat] (singular)
or Tltcah [tolteka] (plural) came to take on the meaning "artisan". The Aztec oral and
pictographic tradition also described the history of the Toltec Empire, giving lists of rulers and their
exploits.
Colossal atlantids, pyramid B, Toltec, Tula, Mexico, ca. 900-1180 CE. Stone, each 16' high. The
colossal statue-columns of Tula portraying warriors armed with darts and spear-throwers reflect the
military regime of the Toltecs, whose arrival in central Mexico coincided with the decline of the Maya.

The Toltec culture is an archaeological Mesoamerican culture that dominated a state centered
in Tula, Hidalgo, in the early post-classic period of Mesoamerican chronology (ca 8001000 CE). The
later Aztec culture saw the Toltecs as their intellectual and cultural predecessors and described
Toltec culture emanating from Tollan (Nahuatl for Tula) as the epitome of civilization; indeed, in the
Nahuatl language the word "Toltec" came to take on the meaning "artisan".
The Aztec oral and pictographic tradition also described the history of the Toltec empire giving lists of
rulers and their exploits. Among modern scholars it is a matter of debate whether the Aztec narratives
of Toltec history should be given credence as descriptions of actual historical events. While all
scholars acknowledge that there is a large mythological part of the narrative some maintain that by
using a critical comparative method some level of historicity can be salvaged from the sources,
whereas others maintain that continued analysis of the narratives as sources of actual history is futile
and hinders access to actual knowledge of the culture of Tula, Hidalgo.
Other controversy relating to the Toltecs include how best to understand reasons behind the
perceived similarities in architecture and iconography between the archaeological site of Tula and the
Maya site of Chichn Itz no consensus has emerged yet about the degree or direction of influence
between the two sites.

After the fall of Teotihuacan (around 700 AD), the Toltecs gained dominance of Central Mexico.
Their capital city was Tula, north of Mexico City in Hidalgo state. The statues of "atlantes," or
warriors at the site are evidence of the war-like culture characteristic of the Toltecs. According to
legend, there was a conflict between followers of the god Tezcatlipoca and those of the god
Quetzalcoatl. This resulted in a split which eventually led to the fall of the Toltec civilization.
Aztecs

Etymology

The Aztecs, also knows as the Mexica ("meh-shee-kah"), are perhaps the best known of Mexico's
ancient cultures. They dominated Mesoamerica at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards in the early
1500s, but they had only existed as a civilization for some 200 years. The Aztecs were an efficient
military power that came to power within a very short period of time. They practiced human sacrifice
on a large scale.
The Nahuatl words aztecatl [astekat] (singular)[6] and aztecah [asteka] (plural) mean "people
from Aztlan", a mythological place for the Nahuatl-speaking culture of the time, and later adopted as
the word to define the Mexica people. Often the term "Aztec" refers exclusively to the Mexica people
of Tenochtitlan (now the location of Mexico City), situated on an island in Lake Texcoco, who
referred to themselves as Mxihcah Tenochcah [meika tenotka] or Clhuah
Mexihcah [kolwa meika].
Sometimes the term also includes the inhabitants of Tenochtitlan's two principal allied city-states,
the Acolhuas of Texcoco and the Tepanecs of Tlacopan, who together with the Mexica formed
the Aztec Triple Alliance that controlled what is often known as the "Aztec Empire".

Early rulers

Rulers (Tlahtoqueh) of
Tenochtitlan

Rulers subject to Azcapotzalco

Acamapichtli (1375-1395)
Huitzilihhuitl (1396-1417)
Chimalpopoca (1417-1427)

Independent Rulers
Itzcoatl (1427-1440)
 Motecuzoma I Ilhuicamina (1440-
1469)
Axayacatl (1469-1481)
Tizoc (1481-1486)
Ahuitzotl (1486-1502)
Motecuzoma II Xocoyotzin (1502-
1520)
Cuitlahuac (1520)
Cuauhtemoc (1520-1521)

Colonial Indigenous Governors

Juan Velzquez Tlacotzin (1525)
Andrs de Tapia
Motelchiuh (1525-1530)
Pablo Xochiquentzin (1532-1536)
Diego de Alvarado
Huanitzin (1539-1541)
Diego de San Francisco
Tehuetzquititzin(1541-1554)
Esteban de Guzmn (1554-1557)
Cristbal de Guzmn
Cecetzin (1557-1562)
Luis de Santa Mara
Nanacacipactzin(1563-1565)

In the first 50 years after the founding of the Mexica dynasty, the Mexica were a tributary of
Azcapotzalco, which had become a major regional power under the ruler Tezozomoc. The Mexica
supplied the Tepaneca with warriors for their successful conquest campaigns in the region and
received part of the tribute from the conquered city states. In this way, the prestige and economy of
Tenochtitlan gradually grew.
In 1396, at Acamapichtlis death, his son Huitzilihhuitl (Nahuatl: "Hummingbird feather") became
ruler, married to Tezozomocs daughter the relation with Azcapotzalco remained close.
Chimalpopoca (Nahuatl: "She smokes like a shield"), son of Huitzilihhuitl, became ruler of
Tenochtitlan in 1417. In 1418, Azcapotzalco initiated a war against the Acolhua of Texcoco, and
killed their ruler Ixtlilxochitl. Even though Ixtlilxochitl was married to Chimalpopocas daughter, the
Mexica ruler continued to support Tezozomoc. Tezozomoc died in 1426, and his sons began a
struggle for rulership of Azcapotzalco. During this struggle for power Chimalpopoca died, probably
killed by Tezozomocs son Maxtla who saw him as a competitor.
Itzcoatl brother of Huitzilihhuitl and uncle of Chimalpopoca, was elected the next Mexica tlatoani.
The Mexica were now in open war with Azcapotzalco and Itzcoatl petitioned for an alliance with
Nezahualcoyotl, son of the slain Texcocan ruler Ixtlilxochitl against Maxtla. Itzcoatl also allied with
Maxtlas brother Totoquihuaztli ruler of the Tepanec city of Tlacopan. The Triple Alliance of
Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan besieged Azcapotzalco, and in 1428 they destroyed the city
and sacrificed Maxtla. Through this victory Tenochtitlan became the dominant city state in the Valley
of Mexico, and the alliance between the three cities provided the basis on which the Aztec Empire
was built.
Itzcoatl proceeded by securing a power basis for Tenochtitlan, by conquering the city-states on the
southern lake including Colhuacan, Xochimilco, Cuitlahuac and Mizquic. These states had an
economy based on highly productive chinampa agriculture, cultivating floating gardens in the shallow
lake Xochimilco. Itzcoatl then undertook further conquests in the valley of Morelos, subjecting the
city state of Cuauhnahuac.
Imperial Expansion
Motecuzoma I Ilhuicamina
In 1440, Motecuzoma I Ilhuicamina (Nahuatl: "he frowns like a lord, he shoots the sky" was elected
tlatoani, he was son of Huitzilihhuitl, brother of Chimalpopoca and had served as the war leader of
his uncle Itzcoatl in the war against the Tepanecs. The accession of a new ruler in the dominant city
state was often an occasion for subjected cities to rebel by refusing to pay tribute. This meant that
new rulers began their rule with a coronation campaign, often against rebellious tributaries, but also
sometimes demonstrating their military might by making new conquests. Motecuzoma tested the
attitudes of the cities around the valley by requesting laborers for the enlargement of the Great
Temple of Tenochtitlan. Only the city of Chalco refused to provide laborers, and hostilities between
Chalco and Tenochtitlan would persist until the 1450s. Motecuzoma then reconquered the cities in
the valley of Morelos and Guerrero, and then later undertook new conquests in the Huaxtec region of
northern Veracruz, and the Mixtec region of Coixtlahuaca and large parts of Oaxaca, and later again
in central and southern Veracruz with conquests at Cosamalopan, Ahuilizapan and Cuetlaxtlan.
During this period the city states of Tlaxcallan, Cholula and Huexotzinco emerged as major
competitors to the imperial expansion, and they supplied warriors to several of the cities conquered.
Motecuzoma therefore initiated a state of low intensity warfare against these three cities, staging
minor skirmishes called Flower Wars (Nahuatl xochiyaoyotl) against them, perhaps as a strategy
of exhaustion.
Motecuzoma also consolidated the political structure of the Triple Alliance, and the internal political
organization of Tenochtitlan. His brother Tlacaelel served as his main advisor (Nahuatl Cihuacoatl)
and he is considered the architect of major political reforms in this period, consolidating the power of
the noble class (Nahuatl pipiltin) and instituting a set of legal codes, and the practice of reinstating
conquered rulers in their cities bound by fealty to the Mexica tlatoani.
Axayacatl and Tizoc
In 1469, the next ruler became Axayacatl (Nahuatl: "Water mask"), son of Itzcoatls son Tezozomoc
and Motecuzoma Is daughter Atotoztli. He undertook a successful coronation campaign far south of
Tenochtitlan against the Zapotecs in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Axayacatl also conquered the
independent Mexica city of Tlatelolco, located on the northern part of the island where Tenochtitlan
was also located. The Tlatelolca ruler Moquihuix was married to Axayacatls sister, and his alleged
mistreatment of her was used as an excuse to incorporate Tlatelolco and its important market
directly under the control of the tlatoani of Tenochtitlan.
Axayacatl then conquered areas in Central Guerrero, the Puebla Valley, on the gulf coast and
against the Otomi and Matlatzinca in the Toluca valley. The Toluca valley was a buffer zone against
the powerful Tarascan state in Michoacan, against which Axayacatl turned next. In the major
campaign against the Tarascans (Nahua Michhuahqueh) in 1478-79 the Aztec forces were
repelled by a well organized defense. Axayacatl was soundly defeated in a battle at Tlaximaloyan
(today Tajimaroa), losing most of his 32,000 men and only barely escaping back to Tenochtitlan with
the remnants of his army.
In 1481 at Axayacatls death, his older brother Tizoc was elected ruler. Tizocs coronation campaign
against the Otomi of Metztitlan failed as he lost the major battle and only managed to secure 40
prisoners to be sacrificed for his coronation ceremony. Having shown weakness, many of the
tributary towns rebelled and consequently most of Tizocs short reign was spent attempting to quell
rebellions and maintain control of areas conquered by his predecessors. Tizoc died suddenly in
1485, and it has been suggested that he was poisoned by his brother and war leader Ahuitzotl who
became the next tlatoani. Tizoc is mostly known as the namesake of the Stone of Tizoc a
monumental sculpture (Nahuatl temalacatl), decorated with representation of Tizocs conquests.
Ahuitzotl
The next ruler was Ahuitzotl (Nahuatl: "Water monster"), brother of Axayacatl and Tizoc and war
leader under Tizoc. His successful coronation campaign suppressed rebellions in the Toluca valley
and conquered Jilotepec and several communities in the northern Valley of Mexico. A second
campaign to the gulf coast was also highly successful. He began an enlargement of the Great
Temple of Tenochtitlan, inaugurating the new temple in 1487. For the inauguration ceremony the
Mexica invited the rulers of all their subject cities, who participated as spectators in the ceremony in
which an unprecedented number of war captives were sacrificed - some sources giving a figure of
84,000 prisoners sacrificed over four days. Probably the actual figure of sacrifices was much
smaller, but still numbering several thousands. Ahuitzotl also constructed monumental architecture in
sites such as Calixtlahuaca, Malinalco and Tepoztlan. After a rebellion in the towns of Alahuiztlan
and Oztoticpac in Northern Guerrero he ordered the entire population executed, and repopulated
with people from the valley of Mexico. He also constructed a fortified garrison at Oztuma defending
the border against the Tarascan state.
Motecuzoma II Xocoyotzin
At the death of Ahuitzotl the reign passed to his war leader Motecuzoma Xocoyotzin (Nahuatl "He
frowns like a lord, the youngest child"), a son of Axayacatl. His successful coronation campaign
attacked the fortified city of Nopallan in Oaxaca and subjected the adjacent region to the empire. An
effective warrior, Motecuzoma II maintained the pace of conquest set by his predecessor and
subjected large areas in Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla and even far south along the Pacific and Gulf
coasts, conquering the province of Xoconochco in Chiapas. he also intensified the flower wars
waged against Tlaxcallan and Huexotzinco, and secured an alliance with Cholula. He also
consolidated the class structure of Aztec society, by making it harder for commoners
(Nahuatl macehualtin) to accede to the privileged class of the pipiltin through merit in combat, and
instituted a strict sumptuary code limiting the types of luxury goods that could be consumed by
commoners.
In 1517, Motecuzoma received the first news of ships with strange warriors having landed on the
Gulf Coast near Cempoallan and he dispatched messengers to greet them and find out what was
happening, and he ordered his subjects in the area to keep him informed of any new arrivals. In
1519, he was informed of the arrival of the Spanish fleet of Hernn Corts, who soon marched
towards Tlaxcallan where he formed an alliance with the traditional enemies of the Aztecs. On
November 8, 1519, Motecuzoma II received Corts and his troops and Tlaxcalan allies on the
causeway south of Tenochtitlan, and he invited the spaniards to stay as his guests in Tenochtitlan.
When Aztec troops destroyed a Spanish camp on the gulf coast, Corts ordered Motecuzoma to
execute the commanders responsible for the attack, and Motecuzoma complied. At this point the
power balance had shifted towards the Spaniards who now held Motecuzoma as a prisoner in his
own palace. As this shift in power became clear to Motecuzoma's subjects the Spaniards became
increasingly unwelcome guests in the capital city, and in June 1520, hostilities broke out, culminating
in the massacre in the Great Temple, and a major uprising of the Mexica against the Spanish. During
the fighting Motecuzoma was killed, either by the Spaniards who killed him as they fled the city or by
the Mexica themselves who considered him a traitor.

Nobles and commoners

folio form the Codex mendoza showing a commoner advancing through the ranks by taking captives
in war, each attire can be achieved by taking a certain number of captives
The highest class were the ppiltin or nobility. The pilli status was hereditary and ascribed certain
privileges to its holder, such as the right to wear particularly fine garments and consume luxury
goods, as well as to own land and direct corve labor by commoners. The most powerful nobles
were called lords (Nahuatl teuctin) and they owned and controlled noble estates or houses, and
could serve in the highest government positions or as military leaders. Nobles made up about 5% of
the population. p= The second class were the mcehualtin, originally peasants, but later extended to
the lower working classes in general. Eduardo Noguera estimates that in later stages only 20% of
the population was dedicated to agriculture and food production. The other 80% of society were
warriors, artisans and traders. Eventually, most of the mcehuallis were dedicated to arts and crafts.
Their works were an important source of income for the city. Macehualtin could become enslaved,
(Nahuatl tlacotin) for example if they had to sell themselves into the service of a noble due to debt or
poverty, but enslavement was not an inherited status among the Aztecs. Some macehualtin were
landless and worked directly for a lord (Nahuatl mayehqueh), whereas the majority of commoners
were organized into calpollis which gave them access to land and property.

Crafts and trades

The excess supply of food products allowed a significant portion of the Aztec population to dedicate
themselves to trades other than food production. Apart from taking care of domestic food production
women weaved textiles from agave fibers and cotton. Men also engaged in craft specializations such
as the production of ceramics and of obsidian and flint tools, and of luxury goods such as beadwork,
featherwork and the elaboration of tools and musical instruments. Sometimes entire calpollis
specialized in a single craft, and in some archeological sites large neighborhoods have been found
where apparently only a single craft speciality was practiced.
The Aztecs did not produce much metal work, but did have knowledge of basic smelting technology
for gold, and they combined gold with precious stones such as jade and turquoise. Copper products
were generally imported from the Tarascans of Michoacan.

Urbanism

Aztec society was a combined a relatively simple agrarian rural tradition with the development of truly
urbanized society with a complex system of institutions, specializations and hierarchies. The urban
tradition in Mesoamerica was developed during the classic period with major urban centers such as
Teotihuacan with a population well above 100,000, and at the rise of the Aztec the urban tradition
was ingrained in Mesoamerican society, with urban centers serving major religious, political and
economic functions for the entire population.
Tenochtitlan

Map of the Island city of Tenochtitlan

The capital city of the Aztec empire was Tenochtitlan, now the site of modern-day Mexico City. Built
on a series of islets in Lake Texcoco, the city plan was based on a symmetrical layout that was
divided into four city sections called campan (directions). Tenochtitlan was built according to a fixed
plan and centered on the ritual precinct, where the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan rose 50 m
(164.04 ft) above the city. Houses were made of wood and loam, roofs were made of reed, although
pyramids, temples and palaces were generally made of stone. The city was interlaced with canals,
which were useful for transportation. Anthropologist Eduardo Noguera estimates the population at
200,000 based in the house count and merging the population of Tlatelolco (once an independent
city, but later became a suburb of Tenochtitlan). If one includes the surrounding islets and shores
surrounding Lake Texcoco, estimates range from 300,000 to 700,000 inhabitants. Michael E. Smith
gives a somewhat smaller figure of 212,500 inhabitants of Tenochtitlan based on an area of 1,350
hectares and a population density of 157. The second largest city in the valley of mexico in the Aztec
period was texcoco with some 25,000 inhabitants dispersed over 450 hectares.
The center of Tenochtitlan was the sacred precinct, a walled-off square area which housed the Great
Temple, temples for other deities, the ballcourt, the calmecac (a school for nobles), a skull rack
tzompantli, displaying the skulls of sacrificial victims, houses of the warrior orders, a penitential
palace of the tlatoani and a merchants palace. Around the sacred precinct were the royal palaces of
the rulers.
The Great Temple

Scale model of the Great Temple at the Museo Templo Mayor in Mexico city.
The centerpiece of Tenochtitlan was the Templo Mayor, the Great Temple, a large stepped pyramid
with a double stair case leading up to two twin shrines one dedicated to Tlaloc the other to
Huitzilopochtli. This was where most of the human sacrifices were carried out during the ritual
festivals and the bodies of sacrificial victims were thrown down the stairs. The temple was enlarged in
several stages, and most of the Aztec rulers made a point of adding a further stage, each with a new
dedication and inauguration. The temple has been excavated in the center of Mexico City and the rich
dedicatory offerings are displayed in the Museum of the Templo Mayor.

Other cities
Other major Aztec cities were some of the previous city state centers around the lake including
Tenayuca, Azcapotzalco, Texcoco, Colhuacan, Tlacopan, Chapultepec, Coyoacan, Xochimilco, and
Chalco. In the Puebla valley Cholula was the largest city with the largest pyramid temple in
Mesoamerica, while the confederacy of Tlaxcala consisted of four smaller cities. In Morelos,
Cuahnahuac was a major city of the Nahuatl speaking Tlahuica tribe, and Tollocan in the Toluca
valley was the capital of the Matlatzinca tribe which included Nahuatl speakers as well as speakers of
Otomi and the language today called Matlatzinca. Most Aztec cities had a similar layout with a central
plaza with a major pyramid with two staircases and a double temple oriented towards the west.
Religion
Aztec religion was organized around the practice of calendar rituals dedicated to a pantheon of
different deities. Similar to other Mesoamerican religious systems it has generally been understood as
a polytheist agriculturalist religion with elements of animism. Central in the religious practice was the
offering of sacrifices to the deities, as a way of thanking or paying for the continuation of the cycle of
life.
Deities

The deity Tezcatlipoca depicted in the Codex Borgia, one of the few extant pre-hispanic codices
The main deities worshipped by the Aztecs were Tlaloc, a rain and storm deity, Huitzilopochtli a solar
and martial deity and the tutelary deity of the Mexica tribe, Quetzalcoatl, a wind, sky and star deity
and cultural hero, Tezcatlipoca, a deity of the night, magic, prophecy and fate. The Great Temple in
Tenochtitlan had two shrines on its top, one dedicated to Tlaloc, the other to Huitzilopochtli.
Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca each had separate temples within the religious precinct close to the
Great Temple, and the high priests of the Great Temple were named Quetzalcoatl Tlamacazqueh.
Other major deities were Tlaltecutli or Coatlicue a female earth deity, the deity
couple Tonacatecuhtli and Tonacacihuatl were associated with life and
sustenance, Mictlantecutli and Mictlancihuatl, a male/female couple of deities of the underworld and
death, Chalchiutlicue, a female deity of lakes and springs, Xipe Totec, a deity of fertility and the
natural cycle, Huehueteotl or Xiuhtecuhtli a fire god, Tlazolteotl a femal deity tied to childbirth and
sexuality, and a Xochipilli and Xochiquetzal gods of song, dance and games. In some regions,
particularly Tlaxcala, Mixcoatl or Camaxtli was the main tribal deity. A few sources mention a
deity Ometeotl who may have been a god of the duality between life and death, male and female and
who may have incorporated Tonacatecuhtli and Tonacacihuatl. Apart from the major deities there
were dozens of minor deities each associated with an element or concept, and as the Aztec empire
grew so did their pantheon because they adopted and incorporated the local deities of conquered
people into their own. Additionally the major gods had many alternative manifestations or aspects,
creating small families of gods with related aspects.
Mythology and Cosmovision

Aztec cosmological drawing with the god Xiuhtecuhtli, the lord of fire and of the Calendar in the center
and the other important gods occupying the four cosmic directions around him each in front of a
sacred tree. From the Codex Fejrvry-Mayer.
Aztec mythology is known from a number of sources written down in the colonial period. One set of
myths, called Legend of the Suns, describe the creation of four successive suns, or periods, each
ruled by a different deity and inhabited by a different group of beings. Each period ends in a
cataclysmic destruction that sets the stage for the next period to begin. In this process, the deities
Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl appear as adversaries, each destroying the creations of the other. The
current Sun, the fifth, was created when a minor deity sacrificed himself on a bonfire and turned into
the sun, but the sun only begins to move once the other deities sacrifice themselves and offers it their
life force.
In another myth of how the earth was created Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl appear as allies,
defeating a giant crocodile Cipactli and requiring her to become the earth, allowing humans to carve
into her flesh and plant their seeds, on the condition that in return they will offer blood to her. And in
the story of the creation of humanity Quetzalcoatl travels with his twin Xolotl to the underworld and
brings back bones which are then ground like corn on a metate by the goddess Cihuacoatl, the
resulting dough is given human form and comes to life when Quetzalcoatl imbues it with his own
blood.
Huitzilopochtli is the deity tied to the Mexica tribe and he figures in the story of the origin and
migrations of the tribe. On their journey, Huitzilopochtli, in the form of a deity bundle carried by the
Mexica priest, continuously spurs the tribe on by pushing them into conflict with their neighbors
whenever they are settled in a place. In another myth Huitzilopochtli defeats and dismembers his
sister the lunar deity Coyolxauhqui and her four hundred brothers at the hill of Coatepetl. The
southern side of the Great Temple, also called Coatepetl, was a representation of this myth and at the
food of the stairs lay a large stone monolith carved with a representation of the dismembered
goddess.
Calendar

The so-called "Aztec calendar stone" or "Sun Stone", a large stone monolith unearthed in Mexico City
depicting the five eras of Aztec mythical history, with the calendric images adoring the edges.
Aztec religious life was organized around the calendars. As most Mesoamerican people, the Aztecs
used two calendars simultaneously: a ritual calendar of 260 days called the tonalpohualli and a solar
calendar of 365 days called the xiuhpohualli. Each day had a name and number in both calendars,
and the combination of two dates were unique within a period of 52 years. The tonalpohualli was
mostly used for divinatory purposes and it consisted of 20 day signs and number coefficients of 1-13
that cycled in a fixed order. The xiuhpohualli was made up of 18 months of 20 days, and with a
remainder of 5 void days at the end of a cycle before the new xiuhpohualli cycle began. Each 20-
day month was named after the specific ritual festival that began the month, many of which contained
a relation to the agricultural cycle. Whether, and how, the Aztec calendar corrected for leap year is a
matter of discussion among specialists. The monthly rituals involved the entire population as rituals
were performed in each household, in the calpolli temples and in the main sacred precinct. Many
festivals involved different forms of dancing, as well as the reenactment of mythical narratives by
deity impersonators and the offering of sacrifice, in the form of food, animals and human victims.
Every 52 years the two calendars reached their shared starting point and a new calendar cycle
began. This calendar event was celebrated with a ritual known as Xiuhmolpilli or the New Fire
Ceremony. In this ceremony old pottery was broken in all homes and all fires in the Aztec realm were
put out. Then a new fire was drilled over the breast of a sacrificial victim and runners brought the new
fire to the different calpolli communities where fire was redistributed to each home. The night
without fire was associated with the fear that star demons, tzitzimime, might descend and devour
the earth ending the fifth period of the sun.

Human sacrifice
Human sacrifice as shown in the Codex Magliabechiano
To the Aztecs, death was instrumental in the perpetuation of creation, and gods and humans alike
had the responsibility of sacrificing themselves in order to allow life to continue. As described in the
myth of creation above, humans were understood as responsible for the sun's continued revival, as
well as for the paying the earth for its continued fertility. Blood sacrifice in various forms were
conducted. Both humans and animals were sacrificed, depending on the god to be placated and the
ceremony being conducted, and priests of some gods were sometimes required to provide their own
blood through self-mutilation. It is known that some rituals included acts of cannibalism, with the
captor and his family consuming part of the flesh of their sacrificed captives, but it is not known how
widespread this practice was.
While human sacrifice was practiced throughout Mesoamerica, the Aztecs, if their own accounts are
to be believed, brought this practice to an unprecedented level. For example, for the reconsecration
of the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan in 1487, the Aztecs reported that they sacrificed 80,400
prisoners over the course of four days, reportedly by Ahuitzotl, the Great Speaker himself. This
number, however, is not universally accepted.
The scale of Aztec human sacrifice has provoked many scholars to consider what may have been the
driving factor behind this aspect of Aztec religion. In the 1970s, Michael Harner and Marvin
Harris argued that the motivation behind human sacrifice among the Aztecs was actually the
cannibalization of the sacrificial victims. Harner claimed that very high population pressure and an
emphasis on maize agriculture, without domesticated herbivores, led to a deficiency of essential
amino acids amongst the Aztecs. While there is universal agreement that the Aztecs practiced
sacrifice, there is a lack of scholarly consensus as to whether cannibalism was widespread. Harris,
author of Cannibals and Kings, has propagated the claim, originally proposed by Harner, that the
flesh of the victims was a part of an aristocratic diet as a reward, since the Aztec diet was lacking in
proteins. These claims have been refuted by Bernard Ortz Montellano who, in his studies of Aztec
health, diet, and medicine, demonstrates that while the Aztec diet was low in animal proteins, it was
rich in vegetable proteins. Ortiz also points to the preponderance of human sacrifice during periods of
food abundance following harvests compared to periods of food scarcity, the insignificant quantity of
human protein available from sacrifices and the fact that aristocrats already had easy access to
animal protein. Today many scholars point to ideological explanations of the practice, noting how the
public spectacle of sacrificing warriors from conquered states was a major display of political power,
supporting the claim of the ruling classes to divine authority. It also served as an important deterrent
against rebellion by subjugated polities against the Aztec state, and such deterrents were crucial in
order for the loosely organized empire to cohere.

Literature

An example of Nahuatl writing of three place names.

The Aztecs did not have a fully developed writing system like the Maya did, but like the Maya and
Zapotec they did use a writing system that combined logographic signs with phonetic syllable signs.
Logograms would for example be the use of an image of a mountain to signify the
word tepetl "mountain", whereas a phonetic syllable sign would be the use of an image of a
tooth tlantli to signify the syllable tla in words unrelated to teeth. The combination of these principles
allowed the Aztecs to represent the sounds of names of persons and places. Narratives tended to be
represented through sequences of images, using different iconographic conventions such as
footprints to show paths, temples on fire to show conquest events etc.
Epigrapher Alfonso Lacadena has demonstrated that the different syllable signs used by the Aztecs
almost enabled the representation of all the most frequent syllables of the Nahuatl language (with
some notable exceptions), but some scholars have argued that such a high degree of phoneticity was
only achieved after the conquest when the Aztecs had been introduced to the principles of phonetic
writing by the Spanish. Other scholars, notably Gordon Whittaker, have argued that the syllabic and
phonetic aspects of Aztec writing were considerably less systematic and more creative than
Lacadena's proposal suggests, arguing that Aztec writing never coalesced into a strictly syllabic
system such as the Maya writing, but rather used a wide range of different types of phonetic signs.
The image to right demonstrates the use of phonetic signs for writing place names in a colonial Aztec
codex. The uppermost place is "Mapachtepec", meaning literally "Raccoon mountain", but the glyph
includes the phonetic signs "MA" (hand) and "PACH" (moss) over a mountain "TEPETL" spelling the
word "mapach" ("raccoon") phonetically instead of logographically. The other two
placenames Mazatlan ("deer place") and Huitztlan ("thorn place") use the phonetic element "TLAN"
represented by a tooth (tlantli) combined with a deer head to spell "MAZA" (mazatl = deer) and a
thorn (huitztli) to spell "HUITZ".