Term
|
Definition
Franciscan Friar; Wrote the Florentine Codex
Fluent in Nahuatl & Spanish
Tried to understand the indigenous → researching their culture, history, religion, econ, etc. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Text (in Nahuatl & spanish) documenting Aztec’s culture, religion, history
illustrations drawn by natives w/ european techniques
Written or translated by Bernardino de Sahagun |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
human-god, warrior
War deity associated with darkness and strife; also a patron god of Aztec rulership
“smoking mirror”
Usually missing a foot
associated with obsidian |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“Sacred Maize”, God of maize, animate form of corn
emphasize how important maize is to mesoam. culture (sacred; the substance of our body)
God of the late ripening maize
When humans were eating maize they were actually eating the flesh of this god; this had to be restored to the God in the form of human sacrifices. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Close to Tlaloc’s shrine at Templo Mayor
Ritual place for military people
Eagle is symbolic of warriors
Murals show stylized warrior procession- direct copy of Toltec art (found in Tula)
Tula is the major Toltec site
Found life size ceramic death lord (Mictlan Tecuhtli) and an eagle warrior
Place for private ritual- bloodletting probably went on here |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
(Mayan word)
Many of them in different pyramids of different cultures
All represent the deity or impersonator of the rain god, Tlaloc
Holds a copy of the greenstone vessel
One was found buried deep inside the Templo Mayor
Reclining warrior figure, probably used in sacrifice |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
(description from BB) name of large town where Cortes and his party stayed on their way to Tenochtitlan. This city was an enemy of Motecuhzoma and Mexica Aztecs, and they became eventual allies of the Spanish. Without their aid the Conquest would have been almost impossible.
City of Nahuatl-speaking persons southeast of the Valley of Mexico |
|
|
Term
| Tlaltecuhtli (or Tlalteuctli) |
|
Definition
Largest Aztec monument
Surface of the world
Found in 2008 in front of Templo Mayor
It grounds the Great Temple with the floor (link between earth and mountain)
Her image is found on the bottom of other sculptures and monuments, it was not meant to be seen by people. Its purpose was for the object to make a connection with the land,“cosmic glue”. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Oversees the archaeology at the Templo Mayor
Taught by Eduardo Matos Moctezuma and has now taken over much of what he used to do
Son of a famous Mexican scholar |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
(Pastory, 85) The last New Fire Ceremony took place at the beginning of this year in 1507, which accounts for the importance of this date on monuments such as the Temple Stone and Year Bundle.
This date is among those most frequently seen on sculpture and its meaning is not always clear (New fire ceremony is always on this year)
Also associated with god Tezcatlipoca (Smoking Mirror/Human god warrior) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Major pre columbian town. Later it was destroyed by Cortez because the leader refused to meet with him
was not destroyed during the conquest because it was too hard to get to
Built during Ahutzo: 5 Rabbit: Early 15th Century
Still some plaster on it
However, a temple was preserved on the mountainside and is a great example of Aztec art
Town on a hillside of Cuernavaca
Dedicated to the pulque gods |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Aztec temple associated with Quetzalcoatl (Feathered Serpent) and the god of wind Ehecathl
Found during Mexico city’s subway construction, south of Zocalo
Today it is part of the metro station Pino Suarez
Only one stairway
Two levels shows evolution of architecture |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
A priest’s book written after the Spanish came in the 16th century
Codex written for viroid
Aztec calendar has 13 numbers and 20 day names (rabbit, reed, etc)
This codex lists the 13 day numbers and shows the gods associated with the days to show if it will be a “good” or “bad” day
One god oversees each 13 day period
Shows the offerings necessary for a particular day |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Temple cut out of living rock- only example of this in Mesoamerica
Channels are carved in the rock to channel water
Snakes around the entrance of door- mat is a snake
No masonry
-walking into the Malinalco temple you are walking into the snake: The mouth.
conceived as an artificial cave
-In the center there is an alter/seat in the shape of an eagle and one behind shaped as a jaguar
Eagle seat, jaguar pelt
Artificial cave- interested in replication of landscape (origin cave)
Study of these temples on the periphery can shed light on the empire |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Pyramid resonates with Tenochtitlan architecture. similar style as great temple
Original pyramid is covered with many modern repairs
Duality: Double pyramid/staircases from post classic restricted to the valley of Mexico
Almost as big as the Great Temple
Snakes at the bottom of the pyramid- god of the ancestors are watching
facing west to the setting suns |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The city directly north of Tenochtitlan. It attempted to remain separate of Tenochtitlan and even built a wall between the two cities to do so but this city was eventually conquered by the Mexica and became an extended part of the city of Tenochtitlan. This city was also known for its large market place in the center of the city.
It has a double staircase and it used to be covered by a very thin layer of plaster
They preserved part of the pyramids for performance
Juxtaposition of architecture
-pre-Columbian, colonial, and modern architecture of mexico
-This city is famous for 1968: student march and protest and many people killed
twin city to the island of Technochitlan
Platforms preserved for outdoor masses while trying to convert Aztecs to Catholicism
-Birth of Mestizo when Hernandez conquered Cuatemoc |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Part of the triple alliance
Directly east of the lake |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Mother or Huitzilopochtli. Name means “serpent skirt”.
She became pregnant with Huitzilopochtli after finding a ball of down or feathers and placing in her mantle. After hearing of the pregnancy Coyolxauhqui, her daughter, was shamed and sent her 400 brothers to kill her. When they attempted to carry out the plot Huitzilopochtli emerged from her womb and cut of the head of Coyolxauhqui and drove the 400 brothers out of Coatepec. A large statue of her has been excavated. She wears a necklace of hands and hearts with a human skull in the center. Her head is that of two serpents facing each other. The snakes are symbolic representations of streams of blood, depicting the sacrifice of her as a mother during the birth of Huitzilopochtli.
Sculpture: Necklace made of human hands and hearts, breasts underneath necklace, huge sculpture found in Tenochtitlan, Skirt of intertwined snakes |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Sister of Huitzilopochtli, daughter of Coatlique
Name means “she with bells on her cheeks”
Decapitated by Huitzilopochtli
Her mother is Cotalique, who is the mother of Huitzilopochtli and the 400 southerners
Her mother, Cotalique, becomes impregnated with Huitzilopochtli after putting feathers in her blouse- Coyolxauqui wants to kill her mother and the baby and rallies her brothers
Huitzilopochtli is born and dismembers his sister
She dies at Coatepec and becomes the moon |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Serpent Hill.
Part of the Aztec origin myth
Aztecs originate in a place called Aztlan and migrate here and stay for about 30 years
Some people want to stay here and some want to go- Huitzilopochtli leads those that don’t want to stay
It is also the birthplace of the Mexica’s patron god Huitzilopochtli and where the battle of the 400 southerners + Coyolxauqui vs Huitzilopochtli occurs
This myth is recreated on the Huitzilopochtli side of the Great Temple |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Image, personification: representation
Aztecs thought that the god’s essence could live in an object
extracting the essence of a deity and putting it somewhere else
no distinction between objects and gods
Aztec’s would redress and paint captured warriors to embody a god |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Mexico City’s downtown, under which is Tenochtitlan
Excavations of Templo Mayor can be seen here
Gathering place- for ceremonies |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Main excavator of the Great Temple
Oversaw years of excavation in Mexico City |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
First archaeologist to look at Teotihuacan
Also worked in Mexico city, first director of the Nation Museum
Interested in scientific documentation of the digging that went on in Mexico city
Even up until the 20th century, no one knew what Aztec architecture looked like; Batres’ reconstruction is still very imaginative
Friend of Porfirio Diaz |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Goggle eyes, mustache, shell as eyes, sharp teeth
Usually surrounded by water
God of thunder, agriculture, and rain, fertility
North shrine of the Great Temple dedicated to him
Aztecs considered him to be an ancient god, associated with the Toltecs |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“hummingbird of the left, or of the south”
one of the shrines (South) of the Great Temple was dedicated to him
Was said to have been born at Coatepec (serpent hill) near Tula, another stop on the Mexica migration
Legend: Coatlicue was sweeping the temple one day when she found a ball of down. She put it in her bosom of her dress, but then she found that the ball had disappeared and she discovered that miraculously she was pregnant (expecting this god). Coatlicue’s 400 sons and Coyolxauhqui conspire against mother. This god is born fully armed, and decapitates his sister Coyolxauhqui. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“Feathered serpent”
Peaceful Toltec ruler
Legend: Tezcatlipoca (Smoking Mirror) gives him an alcoholic drink, he sleeps with his sister. Ashamed of himself he travels east in the year I Reed.
Aztecs had a legend that he would come back, so some thought that Cortez was this deity
Sacrificed butterflies- believed in peacefulness and was a great philosopher |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
wooden framework on which the heads of sacrificed victims were placed
skull rack
Found by Tlaloc side of temple-
communicates the power of the empire |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“The Great Temple” or “Great Sacred House”
Build new versions of the temple on top of the previous ones
Can assign certain construction periods to different rulers
Two shrines on the top: Huitzilopochtli- south (patron god of Mexica during migration) and Tlaloc- North (fertility, rain, agriculture)
Great example of duality and complexity. Two hearts that make one.
Pyramid might be trying to represent two mountains (Iztaccihuatl and Popocatepetl)
It had a ballcourt |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Ruled after Cuitlahuac, Montecuhzoma II’s sucessor
Last tlatoani
Made his last stand at Tlatelolco
Tortured by Spanish to find gold
Hanged by Cortez |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Finished the phase of the Great Temple that was started by Tizoc
Eight Aztec emperor (1486-1502), he was the son of Motecuhzoma I, and father of Cuahtemoc, the last emperor. (7 Reed)
His reign was marked by the expansion of the empire into Guerrero, and by major public works, including completion of the renovation of the Main Temple begun by Tizoc, and the building of the ill-fated aqueduc from Chapultepec to Tenochtitlan which caused a flood in 1486. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Name means “obsidian serpent”
Fourth Aztec emperor (1426-1440). He led the Mexica to victory over their Tepanec overlords in the war that produced the triple Alliance and the beginning of the Aztec empire.
Burned Aztec history in the mid 15th century and rewrote their ancestry
Began the reconstruction of Tenochtitlan on a grander scale.
During his reign, Tezozomoc (ruler of Azcapotzalco) dies. He decides to reject the overlordship of Azcapotzalco and decides to reconquer Texcoco for the exiled Nezahualcoyotl.
Triple alliance: Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, Tlacopan |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Cosmic rays
Symbol of the sun on top
Representation of conquest
Each of the people conquered have different dress, symbolizing different areas
Aztecs dressed similarly to Tula warriors.
Big disks such as this one are called Cuauhxicalli. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Found in 1971, made people realize they could study the Aztecs through their culture
Tizoc was a weaker ruler but made huge monuments to make himself look great
The top and bottom of the sides have celestial bands around it
Shows the current tlatoani as reincarnation of Huitzilopochtli |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“God”, holy thing, energy, spirit
Manifestation of a universal sacred essence permeating the natural world and also human experience |
|
|
Term
| Four Movement, or Four Earthquake (Nahui Ollin) |
|
Definition
The date of the future destruction of Aztec’s era
Humanity would have an end by earthquake on this day
center of the Sun stone calendar |
|
|
Term
| The Five Suns, or Five Eras |
|
Definition
4 Wind, 4 Water, 4 Jaguar, 4 Rain, 4 Movement (Earthquake)
4 Wind, 4 Water, 4 Jaguar, 4 Rain are the worlds before the Aztec
Each one ended with catastrophes appropriate to their sign, each time all humanity perished
4 earthquake is our current time period |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Every 52 years the cycle repeats and the world is renewed by sacred fires drilled into a hill, Huixachtepetl
At the end of the old fifty-two-year cycle fire were allowed to go out and the priests burned the bundle of sticks which symbolized the new era
There was always fear that at the end of the cycle the earth would be destroyed |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The days which began the solar years. Each day of the 260-day divinatory calendar had a name, one within a repeating cycle of 20 names, and this divinatory cycle ran concurrently with a 365-day solar year cycle.
The day name of the first day of the solar year
Only four day names could be given to a year: Reed, Flintknife, Rabbit, or House
It can give you omens about the year |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
divided into 18 months of 20 days each with an extra 5 days at the end (19th month)
Each month had its own presiding deity and ritual related primarily to the agricultural seasons, crafts and professions
Last five days filled with celebration and renewal |
|
|
Term
| The 260-day calendar- Tonalpohualli |
|
Definition
Divinatory almanac or ritual calendar which disclosed men’s fate day by day
13 numbers and 20 day names (The name of a day is a combination of both) 260 day combinations
Probably tied to human body (pregnancy of 9 months)
Each day had its god and bird or butterfly
Codex Borbonicus |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
League of three cities: Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, Tlacopan, lasting until the time of the Spanish conquest, that is usually called the “Aztec empire”
Overtime Tenochtitlan becomes more dominant
United by Itzcoatl
Formed after a successful revolt of the vassal cities against Tepanec kingdom in 1428
Formalized under Moctecuhzoma I
Three retained theoretical sovereignty |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Community, town, polity
Literally means “water mountain” |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Literaly means “big house”
They may have been a kin group such as lineage, or a residential group such as barrio or district
The Mexica described themselves in their migration legends as members of one, traveling together
By the 16th century most them consisted of peasant groups that specialized in farming, salt making, mat making, pottery, and activities of non-elite status
Social, economic, and religious unit within Tenochtitlan; nested scales of importance within society, predetermined
Each unit related to families or a patron gods
Religious identities- each identified with a particular “patron” god
The “macehulli” were the lower class that populated the lower ________
This system in place in most major cities
Communal land rights (no individual property) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
A Maya woman who had been presented to Cortes as a gift, mentioned earlier in the narrative. Also known as Dona Marina, she was a vital element in the story of the Conquest
Marina was fluent in Mayan and Nahuatl, and together with Aguilar, the shipwrecked Spaniard rescued by Cortes who was fluent in Mayan and Spanish, she served as essential translator between the indigenous and European worlds
seen as a traitor |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
He tried to go on an expedition to Mexico but their ship was ruined in a hurricane and they floated to the Yucatan (Valdivia shipwreck: 1511)
He was a slave of the Maya for many years, but was saved by Cortez and can speak Maya
key to the takeover of Tenochtitlan because he would translate for Cortez (Maya-Spanish) with the help of Malinche who spoke Nahuatl and Maya |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
(Description on BB)High ranking officer under Cortes who because of his blond hair came to be called "Tonatiuh" (the name of the sun god) by the Nahuatl speakers. He would go on to be conquerer of Guatemala.
Eventually gets out of control and kills a lot of Aztecs
He decides to go with an army and conquer the Mayas (Guatemala)
1524-1548 conquest in Guatemala
1697 Final conquest of all the natives |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Wrote A True History of the Conquest of Mexico, in which he accounts Cortez’s arrival in Mexico and their first days in Tenochtitlan
THought they were in a dream, amazed byAztec culture |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Language of the Mexica and other indigenous inhabitants of Central Mexico
Richer in nouns than in verbs
Aztecs had pictorial writing system, phonetic writing
Still spoken in some parts of Mexico today |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Another name Mexicas used
The people of Tenochtitlan |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Aztec tribe who, led by Huitzilopochtli, migrated from the north into the Valley of Mexico, and after serving as mercenaries for other city-states in the valley, founded the city of Tenochtitlan. Although they were one of the last groups of Nahua-speakers to arrive in the valley and were considered blood-thirsty by their neighbors, they became the dominant group in the Aztec empire.
Originally nomadic and seen as barbarians to those already settled in Mexico |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Center around 1100/1200ce for a couple hundred years
Major Toltec site
Architecture- columns in the shape of warriors
Militaristic ideology, derived from earlier cultures like Teotihuacan
Probably spoke Nahuatl
City of Aztec ancestors
Named after Tollan, “place of the bullrushes”
The myth and archaeology don’t match; example of the Aztec reconstruction of their past
Aprox 30,000 inhabitants, not a major city
City of Toltecs and home of the mythical deity-kings Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca
Aztecs laid claim to their own legitimacy through descent from its royal house via Culhuacan
Migration myths include descriptions of a stop at here |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
“City of the gods”
Largest city in all of Mesoamerica
Planned city on a grid
Tenochtitlan was based off the guidelines of Teotihuacan
Main road: Road of the Dead
Temple of the Moon
Temple of the Sun
Temple of the Feathered Serpent
Lacks readable glyphs
When Aztecs come around this city is in ruins
it was an ancient city thought to be built by the Toltecs
Thrived from 200bce- 500/600ce
Vast archaeological site
Framed by Cerro Gordo mountains, recreates the landscape
Aztecs created a history for them- gods all gathered there in the beginning of time and a god had to sacrifice himself
Chicomoztoc- 7 chambered cave, womb of the earth, the supposed place of Aztec origin. Under the pyramid of the sun
Montecuhzoma and other rulers would do rituals in the ruins, thought the Toltecs built it |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Southern Coast of Gulf of Mexico
People before the Aztecs
La Venta- earthen pyramids
Colossal heads- potentially depictions of rulers
1200/1100 bce- rapid transformation of villages to towns and ceremonial centers; political authority and cosmology becomes well defined
Art of interactions of humans with mythical beings- early expression of royal authority
Their art is sometimes abstract and elegant
"Mother culture"
Aztecs desired their art
Ruler cradling young corn god |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Pyramids
Ballcourts
Writing
Screenfold books
Shared calendar system
Religion |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Animistic world view
Certain materials of landscape are animate
ex. sacred mountains
Cyclical time as a sacred entity
Designations for days, the name, is deified
Time is animated and sanctified
ex. how our days of the week are named after gods
Cosmology
High structured “cosmovision” integrating time and ideas of centrality and peripheral space, fully engaged through ritual action
Manifestation of sacredness can be in a pivot point, “axis of the world” (or axis mundi- Vatican, Mecca)
Extensions and transformations of being
Through ritual action, ones identity can be transferred
Blood sacrifice- manifesting the soul of the sacrifice and anointing something, like a sacred image
Reciprocal balance
Make offers to deities and expect something in return |
|
|
