Communicate Co.

Principal characteristics of the Aztec, Toltec and Teotihuacan cultures. The Mexicas or Aztecs From 1325 to 1521. Archaeological sites: Templo Mayor, ancient city of Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco, which now make up part of the Federal District of Mexico City. The name ‘Aztec’ refers to the ancient people who lived in a particular area called Aztlan. (They originated in a mythical city in northwest Mexico). ‘’Mexicas’ is their real name and they founded the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlan. An ancient legend tells of the Aztecs’ search for a mythical and promised land and how Mexico-Tenochtitlan was founded. A sign would show them when they had found the place. The ‘sign’ the Aztecs discovered on a small island in the middle of Lake Texcoco was an eagle perching on a cactus. They were excellent warriors, conquistadors and traders. They founded colonies in Oaxaca and in Chiapas. Mexico-Tenochtitlan was home to almost 300,000 people and human sacrifices were carried out at its principal temples. The city was built on a lake and because of this and its unique beauty, the Spaniards called it the “Venice of America.” Moctezuma II was the last emperor to rule the city from 1502 to 1520 until he was toppled after confusing the Spanish emissaries with the Mexica God Quetzalcoatl. His successor, Cuitlahuac (in 1520), ruled for only three months and died of smallpox – a disease brought over by the Spanish, which reached epidemic proportions. Cuauhtemoc was the last Aztec emperor, ruling from 1520 to 1521. He put up some resistance to the Spaniards before being captured, tortured and executed. The Toltecs From 950 to 1150 AD. Archaeological sites: Tula, Hidalgo. The population of this city was over 60,000. It is also the place where Ce Acatl Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl or the “Feathered Snake” lived (although there were various rulers with the same name in Tula). Tula was so famous that many rulers from other cultures claimed Toltec descent and their bloodline. The Teotihuacans From 100BC to 750 AD. Archaeological sites: Teotihuacan, the state of Mexico. It was the largest Mesoamerican city of its time with a population of more than 125,000. Its inhabitants lived in residential complexes sharing the neighborhood with people from many different cultures. The ‘Pyramid of the Sun’ is the biggest building, standing 63m high. Teotihuacan was the religious and commercial “capital” of its time in the whole of Mesoamerica. Its fall (at the end of the Classic period) affected many of its contemporaries. Strangely enough, no ball courts have been found at Teotihuacan, only scoring rings and murals.