Aztec+War+and+Sacrifice

__Aztec War & Sacrifice__  Alexandra Chebotaryov  ..... When most people think of the Aztec, they probably think about human sacrifice. But would they consider Jesus' crucifixion a human sacrifice? Would they ever think the Romans could sacrifice humans? Are the acts of suicide bombers viewed as sacrifice? In fact, several past societies performed human sacrifice for numerous reasons. Although the Aztec are undoubtably the most recognized practitioners, their intentions were not diabolical nor malicious when viewed from their perspective. ..... The main purpose of the Aztec's use of human sacrifice was to please their gods. They made offerings to their sun and rain gods in order to help their crops grow. Many religious people do one thing or another to appeal to their god or gods and they are not stigmatized. To people today, it may seem like the Aztecs were murdering people but to themselves it might be the same as fasting, praying, etc. The Aztecs might have considered “eating the body of Christ and drinking his blood” a savage and unnatural way of communicating with deities. Sacrifice was more about blood than killing humans, which is why the Aztecs also used animals such as birds and snakes in their rituals. They could also practice bloodletting where a person makes a cut into their body and lets the blood flow out. The main purpose of a bloodletting ritual is to remove toxins and disease from the body. That person does not die in this ritual. But this procedure has been performed in many societies as well even some in today’s world.

..... Well throughout history, including recently, in nearly all societies, warfare has been quite prevalent. Archaeologists suggest that warfare is intertwined with complexity and inequality. The findings of walls surrounding a site show evidence for possible conflict between neighboring societies. When populations grow so do interactions between people. These can often be friendly and cordial but sometimes they can escalate to violence. Evidence for Aztec warfare can be seen in the various sculptures of warriors. According to Long, the “flower war” was a way of obtaining prisoners of war for sacrifice. The enemies of Aztec Triple Alliance, which included Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, were captured instead of killed and then used for human sacrifice. Evidence shows that the weapons the Aztec used were intended only to wound the victim. Violence can also be seen in the many paintings and statues found. Huitzilopochtli, whose name means “hummingbird on the left” or “hummingbird to the south”, was the Aztec god of war. He was also the sun god, supporting the argument that the Aztec were not entirely evil. Below is a sculpture of Coyolxauhqui, the sister of Huitzilopochtli. She was killed by him and is shown dismembered and decapitated. The sculpture measures approximately 10 feet across and weighed about 8 tons!



..... Humans as a whole tend to judge that which is different. The Aztec were certainly considered different from the Spanish. They were a different color, spoke a different language, had a different style of dress, and performed rituals that were different from those that the “white man” was used to. People also sometimes want more than what they have. The Spanish probably saw this new land and wanted it for themselves. The Spanish most likely stretched the truth about the number of sacrifices performed. Diaz and Andres de Tapia estimated over 100,000 skulls on a skull rack, or tzompantli, such as the one below. There were actually about 100 skulls (Pettifor)

..... Recent forensic studies state that the Aztec did in fact resist the Spanish Conquistadors, killed them and even sacrificed children. Scientists say that the findings go along with written Spanish records. I think this story may be biased and needs to be researched further. I believe that the Aztec people were simply doing what any human would do when new people were invading their land – defend themselves. This video clip might shed some light on the sacrifice of children. It shows that it was performed before the Spanish arrived.

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..... The Aztec were not the only ones that sacrificed children. The Inca used children, both boys and girls, as a tribute, or tax. Evidence shows that they were murdered by strangulation or blunt force trauma to the skull (Viegas). Remains of children have also been found in Tula, the capitol city of the Toltec, that dates to 950 to 1150, long before the Aztecs were ever in control.

..... Evidence of turquoise was found in the burials of the children. Turquoise was mined in the United States southwest. This means there was long distance trade, which is a sign of complexity. The bones were all placed pointing east to a sculpture of their god, Tláloc. This suggests ritual practices. Clearly this points against a well established belief that these people were barbaric savages. Not only does it show that they had reasoning and concept of what they did. We also gain insight as to how things were done, although we may never fully understand their reasoning for such.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... The only way to know what really happened between the Aztec and the Spanish conquistadors is to go back in time. Since that is not possible with our current technology, we must rely solely on archaeological findings, and take with a grain of salt what the Spanish are said to have witnessed as evidenced by the highly inaccurate skull count previously. However, not all archaeologists are completely ethical and unbiased, so it is important to keep looking, to talk to the people that live in the area that might be descendants of the Aztec, and to have an open mind. Perhaps the Spanish were a bit ethnocentric and changed their story to make it seem like the Aztec were the vicious ones when it is possible that the Spanish were the ones to blame. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... Human sacrifice, death, and warfare provide so many artifacts for archaeologists. Some of the oldest possible human sacrifices may have been performed by Neanderthals. Lewis states that Neanderthals buried their dead as if they were sleeping, “with knees drawn up and the head placed on a 'pillow' made of flint shavings or vegetation” (Lewis 14). Some bodies were found bound and not in the normal position. This led archaeologists to believe this was evidence of human sacrifice. Another clue was the limbs that were broken and detached from the body. It is thought that Neanderthals broke open bones that contained lots of juicy and delicious marrow for them to feast on. Similarly with the Aztec, there is supporting evidence for cannibalism. Cut marks and scrapes on the bone show that victims had been butchered, while charred bone suggests the person may have been cooked and eaten. Bones are a great find for archaeologists because they can tell a story. They can provide details about what happened when there are no other clues. Teeth marks on bone can mean there was animal activity, such as scavengers feeding on a dead body. Bones can even tell you if and how someone was murdered. A broken hyoid bone, which is a free floating bone in the throat, means the person was strangled. If someone's skull was bashed in, the marks can show what object was used in the beating. While not completely definitive, bones are truly amazing in terms of archeology. If they can do all that, they can surely show if someone was a victim of human sacrifice. A decapitated skull is often sign of sacrifice and warriors were known to keep the skull of their enemy as a trophy. Another sign of human sacrifice is a broken or shattered sternum and ribs. These bones can sometimes be broken when the heart of the victim was removed from the body. However, if whomever was performing the sacrifice were careful, they would simply make a cut between the ribs and pull the heart out.

<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... The offering vessels pictured below, called cuauhxicalli, date to 1325 – 1521 A.D. and are on display at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico. The hole in the center of the animal's back was used to store the hearts of sacrificial victims. The two animals portrayed are the jaguar, representing the night sky, and the eagle, representing the sun. The jaguar was found in Mexico City in 1901.

<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... Templo Mayor, one of the most important temples in Tenochtitlan, was a major site used for offerings. The temple was devoted to the sun and rain gods, Huitzilopochtli and Tláloc respectively. There are two independent sets of stairs for each god with a sculpture representing each one at the entrance of the temple. During the numerous excavations performed, archaeologists found seashells, bones from a variety of animals, skulls, works of art such as masks and figurines, beads, and knives like the one below. These may have been used during their sacrifice offerings and were made out of stone material like flint or obsidian.

<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... Another great archaeological find is the alter on which the victims were sacrificed. According to Hooker, the most commonly performed human sacrifice was when the victim was placed on the alter at the highest point of the temple. Then, four priests would hold the person down while a fifth priest would perform the actual sacrifice and either put the heart into an offering vessel or raise it up to the gods. Archaeologists recently found a large stone alter that may have been used for such a sacrifice or another ceremonial purpose. The 11 foot alter, pictured below, was found at the site of Templo Mayor in 2006. The image is of Tláloc, the god of rain.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... In conclusion, t<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">he Aztecs were not vicious killers. They were spiritual, religious, and fascinating. They did have gods of war, sacrifice, and death but they also had gods and goddesses that represented the sky, water, flowers, medicine, fertility, earth, feasting, dancing, mothers and so much more. It is time for others to really delve into the true culture of the Aztec people and begin to understand how sophisticated and impressive they were for the time which they reigned. Should this happen, the longstanding belief that the Aztec empire is one of barbaric and savage sacrifice will simply be disproven.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">..... The other sections discuss just how much the Aztecs were responsible for, including things like art, politics, architecture, and agriculture. When it comes to understanding a society, it is important not to be ethnocentric. The Aztec people and their culture should not be judged according to our standard, but looked at and studied as its own society. The Spanish made them appear as if they were savages but looking at how beautiful their art is and being cognizant of the reason they performed human sacrifice simply shows how complex a society they were.

Please check out these videos.

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References <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <span style="display: block; font-size: 7.7pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Carrasco, David. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> ... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">2000 City of Sacrifice: The Aztec Empire and the Role of Violence in Civilization. Beacon Press.

Carrasco, David <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">1992 Quetzalcoatl and the irony of empire: myths and prophecies in the Aztec tradition. University of Chicago Press.

Cruz, Isabel de la et al <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">2008 Sex Identification of Children Sacrificed to the Ancient Aztec Rain Gods in Tlatelolco. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">...... Current Anthropology 49(3):519 - 537.

Hooker, Richard <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">1996 Civilizations in America: The Mexica. http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/AZTECS.HTM. accessed April 18, 2009.

Lewis, Brenda Ralph <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">2001 Ritual Sacrifice: An Illustrated History. Sutton Publishing Limited.

Lovgren, Stefan <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">2006 Aztec Temple Found in Mexico City "Expectional," Experts Say. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/10/061005-aztecs.html. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">...... accessed April 19, 2009. Nicholson, H.B. and Keber, Eloise Quinones <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... 1983 Art of Aztec Mexico: Treasures of Tenochtitlan. National Gallery of Art, Washington. <span style="display: block; font-size: 7.7pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Pasztory, Esther <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> ... 1983 Aztec Art. University of Oklahoma Press.

Pettifor, Eric <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> ... 1996 An Offer You Can't Refuse: Human Sacrifice and the Aztec State. http://www.wynja.com/arch/aztec.html. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">...... accessed April 18, 2009. Russell, Henry and Cooke, Tim <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... 2007 Ancient Aztec: Archaeology Unlocks the Secrets of Mexico's Past. National Geographic Society. <span style="display: block; text-align: left; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 7.7pt;">Smith, Michael and Berdan, Frances <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... 1992 Archaeology and the Aztec Empire. World Archaeology. 23(3):353 - 357.

Stevenson, Mark <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">... 2007 Pre-Aztec Child Sacrifice Bones Found. http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2007/04/18/childsacrifice_arc.htm?category=archaeology&guid=2007418103030. accessed April 19 2009. Viegas, Jennifer <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> ... 2005 Inca tax man collected child sacrifices. http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1379822.htm. <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> ...... accessed April 19, 2009.