This artistic language spoke predominantly through the form of iconographic symbols and metaphors For example, the image of the eagle symbolized the warrior
There are many examples in Aztec art in which gods such as Quetzalcoatl, the “feathered serpent,” take a hybrid form, in his case a snake-bird, combining the
Art in the Aztec empire, like its culture and religion, came from a long history - a history of many different tribes Techniques and themes in Aztec art were
ing sight is one of the most famous Aztec sculptures The best remaining examples of Aztec art are its architecture and sculpture Aztec
away from the capital, Tenochtitlan, Aztec emperor Motecuh- Aztec art covers a wide range of media, from gold and turquoise
Aztec Art, by Esther Pasztory 322 pages, frontispiece, 75 color plates, available on this subject, Aztec Art is For example, the iconographic
![[PDF] guggenheim-teaching-materials-the-aztec-empirepdf [PDF] guggenheim-teaching-materials-the-aztec-empirepdf](https://pdfprof.com/EN_PDFV2/Docs/PDF_5/25582_5guggenheim_teaching_materials_the_aztec_empire.pdf.jpg)
25582_5guggenheim_teaching_materials_the_aztec_empire.pdf
TheAztecEmpire
AGUIDETOTHEEXHIBITIONFORTEACHERS
TheAztecEmpireisorganizedbytheSolomonR.GuggenheimMuseumincollaborationwiththeConsejo N a c i o n a lparalaCulturaylasArtes ( CONACULTA)andtheInstitutoNacionaldeAntropologíaeHistoria ( I N
AH)ofMexico.
M a j o rsponsorsofthisexhibitionare A d d i tionalsupportprovidedby T h
isexhibitionhasalsobeenmadepossibleinpartbyanindemnityfromtheFederalCouncilontheArtsandtheHumanities,together
w iththegeneroussupportoftheLeadershipCommitteeforTheAztecEmpire,GRUMA,ALFA,andConEdison. T ransportationassistanceprovidedby M e d iasupportprovidedbyThirteen/WNET S p e c ialthankstotheEmbassyofMexicointheU.S.,theEmbassyoftheUnitedStatesinMexico,andtheConsulateGeneralof M e xicoinNewYork. MAP T
IMELINE
USINGTHISGUIDE
INTRODUCTION
MEXICO-TENOCHTITLAN,AXISMUNDIOFTHEUNIVERSE
T E M P
LOMAYOR
L E
GENDARYCULTURES-AZTECANCESTORS
M E X
ICANBESTIARY
P E
OPLESANDSOCIETIESOFTHEAZTECWORLD
N
OBLELIFEANDEVERYDAYLIFE
GODSANDRITUALS
M
ANUSCRIPTSANDCALENDARS
C
ULTURESSUBJUGATEDBYTHEAZTECS
T
HETARASCANEMPIRE
T
HETWILIGHTOFTHEEMPIRE
V
OCABULARY
BIBLIOGRAPHYANDSUGGESTEDRESOURCES
C R E
DITSANDACKNOWLEDGMENTS
TableofContents
5 6 8 1 0 1 3 1 7 2 1 2 5 2 9 3 3 3 7 4 1 4 5 4 9 5 3 5 6 5 8 6 1
Timelin
5
1200BC
9 0 0BC 6 0 0BC 3 0 0BC 0 250AD
450AD
600AD
750AD
900AD
1200AD
1492AD
1521AD
OlmecTeotihuacánToltec-MayaZapotec
MayaMixtec
ToltecAztec
P r e classic C lassic P o s t c lassic Map A Z T
ECEMPIRE
T E N
OCHTITLAN(MEXICOCITY)
P
ACIFICOCEANTARASCANEMPIRE
GULFOFMEXICO
V E R A C R U Z Thisguide,whichaccompaniestheSolomonR.Guggenheimexhibition T h eAztecEmpire,isdesignedtoprovideideas,activities,andresources t h a texploreissuesraisedbythisexhibition.Theexhibitionandguide f o c u sonthevariedhistoricalandculturalinfluencesthathave c o n tributedtoAztecartanditsdevelopmentasculturallyrich,visually e n g a g ing,andemotionallycompelling. F o rAztecs,artwasamaterialmanifestationoftheirvisionoftheuniverse; i tssymbolswerethereflectionoftheirreligious,economic,politicaland s o c i a lconcepts.Theobjectsthattheycreatedweredesignedtobeused a n dintegratedintodailylife.Althoughvisitorscanappreciatethese w o rksfortheirbeauty,expressivequalities,andworkmanship,theyare f ragmentsdislocatedfromtheirpast. T h eAztecEmpireattheSolomonR.GuggenheimMuseum,onview O c tober15,2004-February13,2005,representsthelargestsurveyof A ztecartevertohavebeenstagedoutsideMexico.Itbringstogether m o rethan430worksdrawnfrompublicandprivatecollections,including a rchaeologicalfindsofthelastdecadeneverbeforeseenoutside M e x ico.Organizedthematically,theexhibitionexploresallaspectsof A ztecreligious,social,andeconomiclifethroughthesheerdiversityand r a n geofartifactsondisplay:frommonumentalstonesculptureto m iniaturegoldobjects,andfromintricateturquoisemosaicstorare p ictorialmanuscripts(orcodices). T h isguideisnotintendedasacomprehensiveoverviewofAztecartor h istory;ratheritfocusesonanimportantworkselectedfromeachofthe m a jorthemesintheexhibition,andprovidessuggestionsfordiscussion q u e stionsandclassroomactivities(FurtherExplorations)intendedto e n c o u ragestudentstospeculateanddevelophypothesesbothabout A ztecsocietyandtheobjectstheyleftbehind.Itishopedthatstudents w illbeabletorelatemuchofthematerialtotheirownlives-citingboth
Usingthis
8 9 s i milaritiesanddifferences.Thebackoftheguideincludesvocabulary a n dphoneticspellingsforselectedAztecwords,aswellasalistof a d d itionalresources.Theguideisavailableinprintedformandon t h emuseum"sWebsiteatwww.guggenheim.org. T h edesignandcontentofthesematerialshaveathree-foldpurpose: •Toassisteducatorsindevelopingclassroomunitsfocusingon T h eAztecEmpire,andaspectsofPrecolumbianNorthAmerica •Toprovideeducatorswiththetoolstoconductaself-guided museumvisit •Toexpandupon,themesandideasimbeddedintheexhibition B yexaminingtheserepresentativeworks,aculturalcontextemerges t ohighlightthemodesofexpressionthatarethehallmarksofAztec c u lture.Althoughtheguideisdesignedtosupporttheexhibitionand w illbemostusefulinconjunctionwithatriptothemuseum,itisalso i n tendedtoserveasaresourcelongaftertheexhibitionhasclosed. B e forebringingaclasstothemuseum,teachersareinvitedtovisitthe e xhibition,readtheguide,anddecidewhichaspectsaremostrelevant f o rtheirstudents. T h eexhibitionhasbeenorganizedbytheSolomonR.GuggenheimMuseumincollaborationwiththeConsejo N a c i o n a lparalaCulturaylasArtes(CONACULTA)andtheInstitutoNacionaldeAntropologíaeHistoria(INAH). G u e s tcuratorisFelipeSolís,DirectoroftheMuseoNacionaldeAntropologíainMexicoCity,co-curatorofthe l a r g e - s c a l esurveyAztecsattheRoyalAcademyinLondonin2003,andoneoftheworld"sforemostauthorities o nAztecartandculture.ExhibitiondesignisbyEnriqueNortenofTENArquitectos+J.MeejinYoon. 1 I ntroduction 1 0 T h eAztecswereamighty c ivilizationthatflourishedin C e n tralAmericabetween1325 a n d1521,whentheywereforced t osurrendertoaninvading S p a n isharmyledbyHernán C o rtés.Fromtheirmagnificent c a p ital,Tenochtitlan,they g o vernedavastempirethat s t retchedfrompresent-day M e x icotoGuatemala,andfromthe A tlantictothePacificoceans(see m a p ).Theyareoftenremembered a safierceandbloodthirstyrace, a g g ressiveinbattleandengaging i nhumansacrificetoappease t h e irvariousgods.However,as t h isexhibitionshows,theAztecs w e realsoextremelycivilizedand s o p h i sticated.Theyproduced h ighlyskilledandsensitiveart, c o n c e ivedperhapsthemost a d vancedcalendaroftheirtime, a n dbuiltextraordinarytemples i ncleanandwell-organizedcities. T h eAztecsorMexica(asthey c a lledthemselvesandarereferred t obyhistorians),migratedthrough M e x icoinsearchoflandtosettle. A c c ordingtothemyth,theAztecs" t riballeader,Huitzilopochtliforetoldthathispeopleshould settlewheretheysawaneagle o nacactuswithasnakeinits b e a k.Afteralongjourney,the
Aztecsarrivedatalake,called
LakeTetzcoco,inMexico"scentral
h i g h l a n dbasin.Inthemiddleof thelakewasanisland,andonthis i slandtheysawthestrangesight thatHuitzilopochtlihadpredicted.
Havingarrivedattheirpromised
l a n d ,theAztecsclaimedtheisland a n ditssurroundingfertileland, a n d ,in1325,foundedacitythey n a m e dTenochtitlan,"theplace o fthestonecactus."Theybuilt atempleinthecenterofthecity (latercalledtheTemploMayor, o rGreatTemple,bytheSpanish), w h i c htheydedicatedto
Huitzilopochtli,theirpatrongod.
Intime,Tenochtitlanwouldgrow
tobecomeabeautifuland p rosperouscityofabout250,000 i n h a b i tants,theheartofavast
Aztecempire.WhentheSpanish
a rrivedtoconquertheAztecsin
1519,theywereawestruckby
thegreatpyramidstoweringover thesacredcenter,thedazzling p a l a c e sandcolorfulmarketsWithsuchwonderfulsightstogazeonwedidnotknowwhattosay,orif t h iswasrealthatwesawbeforeoureyes. B e r n a lDiaz,a26-year-oldconquistador(Spanishconqueror), whofoughtinCortés"sarmy.TheConquestofNewSpain,1580s. sellingabewilderingvariety o ffoodandluxuries. F e a r lesswarriorsandpragmatic b u ilders,theAztecscreatedan e mpireduringthe15thcentury t h a twassurpassedinsizeinthe A mericasonlybythatoftheIncas i nPeru.Asearlytextsandmodern a rchaeologycontinuetoreveal, b e yondtheirconquests,there w e r emanypositiveachievements: •theformationofahighly s p e c i a lizedandstratifiedsociety a n danimperialadministration •theexpansionofatrading n e tworkaswellasatribute s y s tem •thedevelopmentand m a intenanceofasophisticated a g riculturaleconomy,carefully a d justedtotheecology •andthecreationofan i n tellectualandreligiousoutlook t h a theldsocietytobean i n tegralpartofthecosmos. T h eyearlyroundofritesand c e remoniesinthecitiesof T e n o c h titlanandneighboring T e tzcoco,andtheirsymbolicart a n darchitecture,gaveexpressiontoanawarenessofthe i n t e rdependenceofnature a n dhumanity. W h e ntheSpanishdefeated theAztecstheydestroyedmuch o fTenochtitlanandrebuiltitas M e xicoCity,thecapitalofmodern- d a yMexico.Thelegacyofthe A z tecsremains,however,inthe formofarchaeologicalruinssuch a stheTemploMayor,theheart o fAztecreligiousactivityand thesymboliccenteroftheempire. T o d a y"sMexicansareveryproud o ftheirAztecpastandcontinue torememberthetraditionsand p r a c ticetheartformsoftheir a n c e s tors.Morethantwomillion p e o p l estillspeaktheindigenous l a n g u a g eoftheAztecs,Nahuatl. H o w e ver,perhapsthemost p o i g n a n treminderoftheAztecs i stheMexicannationalflag,which featuresthelegendaryeagle, c a c tus,andsnakeemblemofthe l o n g - b u riedheartofthemighty A z tecempire,Tenochtitlan. 1 1
121Fragmentofan
a n t h r o p o m o r p h i cbrazier A z t e c , c a .1300 F i r e dclayandpigment, 1
8x22x9cmMuseo
U n i v e r s i t a r i odeCienciasy A r t e ,UNAM,MexicoCity 0 8 - 7 4 1 8 1 4 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías 2 T h egreattempleknownas t h eTemploMayorofTenochtitlan s y mbolizestheaxismundi,the A zteccenteroftheworld,where t h esky,theearth,andthe u n d e rworldmet.Accordingto A ztecworldview,theuniverse c o n sistedofthreelayers.The m iddlelayerwastheearthlyone, i n h a b itedbyhumans.Abovethat w o r ld,theAztecsimagedthirteen l e v e lsorheavens,Omeyocan, t h e"placeofduality,"beingthe u p p e rmost.Belowtheearthly l a y e r,thereweretheninelevels o ftheunderworld.Thelowest o fthesewastherealmof M i c tlantecuhtli,theLordof t h eLandoftheDead. E a c hofthefourcardinaldirections r a d i a tedoutfromtheTemplo M a y o randwasassociatedwith adeity,abird,acolor,andaglyph. T h edualtempleroseaboveall o therbuildingsintheSacred P recinct.Thesouthernhalfwas d e d icatedtoHuitzilopochtli,solar a n dwargod,whilethenorthern h a lfwasdedicatedtoTlaloc,the g o dofrain,water,andtheearth"s f e r tility.TogetherTlalocandHuitzilopochtli,encompassthe n a turalandsocialuniverseof theAztecempire.WhileTlaloc w a sagodofearthandrain,
Huitzilopochtlistoodforthesun
a n dthesky.Tlalocmarkedthe timeofrains;Huitzilopochtli scorchedtheearth,withsun a n dwar,inthedrymonths.Tlaloc a n dHuitzilopochtlitogether representthecycleoflifeand fertility,andmarkthegeographic, ritual,andsymbolicheartofthe u n i verse,unitingoldandnew, c e n terandperiphery,inthesacred a rtificialmountainloomingover theAzteccapital. M exico-Tenochtitlan,AxisMundi 13
FRAGMENTOFAN
A
NTHROPOMORPHICBRAZIER
T h eAztecwereknownnotonly f o rtheirsculpture,butalsofor t h e irexpressiveandsensitive p o e try.Thesculptureandpoem b e lowprovideaglimpseinto w a y sthatthecyclesoflifewere p o rtrayed.Lookcarefullyatthe s c u l p ture.Thethreefaces r e p resentthecycleoflife.Inthe m iddlewecanseethefaceofa y o u n gman,withallhisteethand w e a r inganornamentbetween t h enoseandupperlip.Oneither s i d earetwohalvesoftheface o fanold,toothlessman;these t wofacesareframedbythe s y mmetricallydividedfaceof acorpsewithitseyesclosed. T h ethirteendecorativerings(four o ntheyoungman"shead,nineon t h ecorpse"s)representtheparts o facalendarcycle.Nezahualcoyotl,thepoet-kingof T e xcocowrites:
I,Nezahualcoyotl,askthis:
Isittrueonereallyliveson
theearth? N o tforeveronearth,onlyalittle w h i l ehere. T h o u g hitbejadeitfallsapart, thoughitbegolditwearsaway, N o tforeveronearth,onlyalittle w h i l ehere. M i c h a e lD.Coe,Mexico:From theOlmecstotheAztecs, (NewYork:ThamesandHudson, 2
002),fifthedition,p.223.
1 4
DiscussionQuestions
•Afterreadingthepoem,describe itsmeaninginyourownwords. •Whatsimilaritiescanyoufind inthepoemandthesculpture. W h a tdifferences?FurtherExplorations •TheartistwhomadetheMask w i thThreeFaceschoseto representthelifecycleinthree stages.Howwouldyouchoose toportraythecycleoflife? W h a tphasesoflifewouldyou i n c l u d e ?Why? 1 5 154
E a g l ewarrior A z t e c , c a .1440-69 F i r e dclay,stucco,andpaint, 1 7
0x118x55cm
M u s e odelTemploMayor, I N A H ,MexicoCity10-220366 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías 3 T h i spartoftheexhibitionis d e v o tedtothewealthof e x traordinaryartifactsexcavated f romthemostsignificantreligious b u i ldinginTenochtitlan,thegreat T e m p loMayor.WhentheAztecs f o u n d e dtheircapital,theybuilt atemple.Between1325and1521, e a c hAztecruleraddedanew o u t e rmostlayertothetempleout o frespecttothegodsandto e n s u r ethathisreignwouldbe i mmortalizedwithinthegreatstone s tructure.Thisimposingstructure l a yattheritualheartofthecity. I twasherethatpublicrituals, i n c ludinghumansacrifice,took p l a c e .Likemostbuildingsofthe t ime,theTemploMayorwas c o v e r e dinstucco,atypeof p l a ster,andpainted.Large s c u lpturesfurtherdecorated t h ebuilding. R e c o g n i zingitsimportancetothe A ztecpeople,aftertheconquest t h eSpanishquicklydismantledthe T e m p loMayor,andreusedsomeof t h estoneintheirconstructionof acathedral,whichstilloccupies o n esideofMexicoCity"smain s q u a r e(orzócalo)today.Theyalsorecordedtheiraweupon s e e i n gthisamazingbuilding.
In1978workerscarryingout
r o u tinemaintenancework o nelectric-lightingequipment u n c o veredalargecircular s c u l p turethatwasidentifiedby a rchaeologistsasarepresentation o fthedismemberedbodyof C o yolxauhqui,goddessofthe moon.Thisfindledtotheeventual u n e a rthingoftheTemploMayor"s long-buriedfoundations.During theexcavation,itwasdiscovered thattheprecedingversionsofthe p yramidcomplexhadbeen p reservedintactwitheach s u b sequentruler"srebuilding, a n dsoarchaeologistswereable toidentifysevendifferentlayers, p e e l i n geachawaylikeanonion s kin.Over100sacrificialdeposits o rofferingscontainingmorethan 6 ,
000objectshavebeen
d i scoveredbuiltintothestructure. 17
TemploMayoranditsSymbolism
18 T h eexcavationsoftheTemplo M a yoralsoyieldedobjectsfrom o l d e rMesoamericanculturesthat t h eAztecshadheldinhighregard. T h eexhaustiverangeofofferings s u g g e s tsthattheAztecscreated t h eTemploMayorasamodelof e v e rythingthatcouldbefoundin t h euniverse,bothpastand p r e sent.Theorganizationofthe f o u r-sidedtemplestructureisalso t h o u g h ttoreflecttheAztec w o rldview,inwhichtheearthis u n d e r s toodtobeadisk, s u rroundedbywateranddivided i n tofourquarters.EAGLEWARRIOR T h emostprestigiousmilitary s o c i e tiesororderswerethose o ftheeagleandthejaguar. T h e sewarriorsworeeithereagle o rjaguarcostumes.Thislife-size s c u l p turerepresentsaneagle warrior.Itisoneofapairthatwas foundflankingadoorwaytothe c h a m b e rwheretheeaglewarriors met,nexttotheTempleMayor. T h eeaglewasthesymbolofthe s u n ,towhomallsacrificeswere o ffered.Thisisoneofthefinest e xamplesoflarge,hollowceramic s c u l p tureseverfoundintheValley o fMexico.
DiscussionQuestions
•Theeagleisoneofthegreatest p r e d a torsintheskies.Tothe A ztecitrepresentedthestrength a n dbraveryessentialtoa w a rrior.Whatcharacteristics d oyouassociatewitheagles? •Howdoyouimaginethejaguar w a rriorcostumeslooked?What c h a r a c teristicswouldajaguar w a rriorpossess?FurtherExplorations •Chooseanotheranimaland d e s i g nacostumethatutilizes i t scharacteristics.Whattraits w o u l dthiscostumelendto i t swearer? 19 86
M a s k T e o t i h u a c a n , c a .450, S t o n e ,turquoise,obsidian, a n dshell, 2 1 .
5x20cm
M u s e oNacionalde A n t r o p o l o g í a ,INAH, M e x i c oCity. P h o t o :MichelZabé 4 T h eAztecswerenotthefirst p e o p letosettleinMexico. F o r2,500yearsbeforetheirarrival, t h eareahadbeenhometomany c ivilizations,includingtheOlmecs, T o l tecs,andthepeopleof T e o tihuacan.TheAztecswere t h elastofthesegreatculturesto s e t tlethere,and,asaresult,were h e a vilyinfluencedbythealready e stablishedgroups.Inorderto i n tegratethemselvesintothearea, t h e yadoptedthenativelanguage, N a h u a tl,andcopiedartisticstyles a n dtechniquesfromother M e s o a mericancultures. ( M e soamericaisthetermusedto d e scribethecentralregionofthe A mericasinhabitedbynative c ivilizationsbeforethearrivalof t h eSpanish.)ThewarlikeAztecs a lsoformedallianceswithnearby c o mmunitiestoconsolidatetheir m ilitarystrengthandexpand t h e irempire. P e rhapsthetwogreatest i n fluencesonAztecartandculture c a mefromtheancientcitiesof T e o tihuacanandTula.Beforeits d e c lineinA.D.700,Teotihuacan h a dbeenawondrouscityofabout200,000people,withextensive templecomplexesandspecialized c r a ftdistricts.Historically,itwas asiteofvitalimportancetothe A z tecs,whorevereditasthe C i t yoftheGods("Teotihuacan"). T h e yalsoincorporatedanumber o fTeotihuacanogodsintotheir p a n theon(familyofgods), i n c l u d i n gTlaloc,theraingod,and C h a l c h i u h t l i c u e("sheofthejade s kirt"),thegoddessoflakesand s treams.Aprincipaldeity,the r u l e r-priestknownasQuetzalcoatl ("featheredserpent"),was a d o p tedfromtheToltecs. T u l a("placeofreeds")and h o m etotheToltecs,thrivedafew h u n d r e dyearsafterTeotihuacan, a n dleftasimilarlyinfluential l e g a c ytolaterMesoamerican c u l t u res.TheAztecsbelieved theToltecswerethefounders o fcivilizationandcreditedthem w i t htheinventionofpaintingand s c u l p ture.Azteccraftsmenheld aprivilegedpositioninsociety, w o r kingforthenobility.Although theywereextremelyimportant, a r tistsneversignedtheirwork, w h i c hwasconsideredcollective. 2 1
LegendaryCultures-AztecAncestors
TheAztecstooktheirinspiration
f romTeotihuacan,Tula,Mixtec, O lmec,andotherancient M e s oamericancultures,adopting e verythingfromstone-cutting t e c h n iquestocalendarsystems. T h ediscoveryofobjectsfrom o therMesoamericancultures d u ringtheexcavationofthe T e m ploMayorsuggeststhat,Aztec r u lersbroughtartistsfromother a reas,includinggoldsmithsfrom t h eMixteca(nearpresent-day O a xaca),toworkinTenochtitlan. O vertimetheywoulddevelop t h e irownoriginalstyleand i c o n o g r a p h y,whichsprangfrom auniquelyAztecperspectiveon w a rfare,religionandcosmology.MASK T h i sburialmaskisfrom T e o tihuacan,adistinctive c i vilizationthatreacheditspeak a roundthesixthcentury,five h u n d redyearsbeforetheAztecs m i g ratedfromnorthwestern
Mexico.Theskilledcraftsmanship
a n dtheexquisitemosaic p a tterningwouldhavebeen g reatlyadmiredbytheAztecs, a sitisbypeopletoday.Thismask i sacknowledgedasoneofthe g reattreasuresofPre-Hispanic a rtinMesoamerica.Maskswere c o m m o n l yplacedovermummy b u n d l e stoprotectthedeceased fromthedangersoftheafterlife.
Madeofstone,itssurfaceis
c o veredinbitsofturquoise, o b sidian,andshell. 2 2 23
D iscussionQuestions •Expertshavedetermined t h a tthismaskwasprobably n o tmeanttobewornbya l ivingperson,butwasattached t oafunerarybundle.What a ttributesofthismaskleadto t h a tconclusion? •InAztecsocietycraftsmen p a ssedtheirskillsonto t h e irsons,whotookuptheir t r a d euponreachingmanhood. W h a ttoolsandskillsand m a terialswouldhavebeen r e q u i redtomakethismask? I ncontemporarysocietywhat s k illsarepassedfromparent t ochild? •Forhundredsofyears,masks m a d efrommanydifferent m a terials,havebeenfashioned b ypeopleintheAmericas. P recolumbianpeoplewereknown t ouseclay,gold,stone,obsidian, w o o d ,bone,shell,turquoise,jade, h a ir,cloth,emerald,alabaster, c o ral,greenstone,diorite,onyx, a n dleatherformasks. W h e rewouldtheyhavefound e a c hofthesematerials?•Thetechniqueofmosaichas b e e nusedfordecorationin manyculturesandcontinues tobepopulartoday.Wherehave y o useenthemosaictechnique? F u rtherExplorations •Mosaicscanbeexecuted inawiderangeofmaterials frompapertomarble.Some r e a d i l yavailableandinexpensive c h o i c e sincludeseeds,pebbles, s m a l lshells,buttonsandbeads. T h e rearemanyexcellentbooks thatprovidestep-by-step instructionsonthedesignand e xecutionofthisdecorative a rtform. 80
F l e a A z t e c , c a .1500 S t o n e ,22x21.5x36.5cm M u s e oNacionalde A n t r o p o l o g í a ,INAH M e x i c oCity, 1 0 - 5 9 4 0 3 9 5 T h egreatvarietyofsculpted a n imalforms,fromminusculefleas t olargecoiledserpents,highlight t h eimportanceofthenatural w o r ldinbothdailylifeand,more p rofoundly,inAztecreligiousand c o smologicalbeliefs.TheAztecs c reatedcarefullyobserved s c u l p turesofdomesticated a n imalssuchasturkeysanddogs, a swellaswildcoyotes,snakes, a n djaguars.Theintensityoftheir o b servationsandtheirabilityto c reatenaturalisticformsare e xemplifiedbythestonesculpture o faninsectthoughttobeaflea. T h eAztecartisthasmagnified t h istinycreaturemanyhundreds o ftimes,sothatfeaturesbarely v i sibletothenakedeyeare f u llydiscernible. T h eAztecsexplainedthe d istinguishingfeaturesandroles o fdifferentanimalsthrough e laborateandoftenentertaining m y ths.Onesuchstorytellshow, w h e nthemoonwasborn,itwas s obrightthatoneofthegods t h r e warabbitatitsfacetodullits g low.Thisiswhy,fortheAztecs, afullmoonappearstocontainthe s i lhouetteofarabbit.Therearemanyexamplesin
Aztecartinwhichgodssuch
a sQuetzalcoatl,the"feathered serpent,"takeahybridform,inhis c a seasnake-bird,combiningthe featuresorqualitiesoftwoanimals toemphasizeaspectsofthedeity"s m ythicalorsupernaturalpowers.
AGRICULTURE
Inadditiontotheanimalsthatthey
c o e xistedwith,theAztecswere a l soreliantontheplantworldto p rovidefoodforsustenanceand fibersfromwhichtoweavecloth, b a skets,andmats.AsAztec societywaslargelyagricultural,it w a sreliantontheweather,which w a ssometimesunpredictableor h a rsh.WhentheAztecsfirst settledaroundLakeTetzcoco, farmlandwasrelativelyscarce a n dsotheycreatedfloatingfields c a l l e dchinampas,whichwere a rrangedinagridpatternwith c a n a l sbetweeneachblock.
Heretheycultivatedpumpkins,
a vocados,andtomatoes(fromthe N a h u a tlaguacatl,tomatl),sweet p o tatoes,chillies,andbeans,as w e l lascorn,whichtheyusedto M exicanBestiary 2 5 26
m a k epancakesknownastortillas. T h emarket-abustling,vibrant, a n dnoisyplacecentraltoAztec d a ilylife-waswherefarmers, t raders,andcraftsmencameto e xchangetheirproduce.One S p a n ishconquistadorlater c o mmented:"Wewereastounded a tthenumberofpeopleand t h equantityofmerchandiseit c o n tained"(BernalDíaz,The C o n q u e stofNewSpain,1580s). V a l u a b leitemssuchasgolddust, q u e tzalfeathers,andcacaobeans w e reusedtobarterforgoodsof e q u a lvalue:turkeys,quail,rabbits, a n ddeer;ducksandotherwater b irds;maguey(cactus)syrup,and h o n e y.Cacaobeanswerealso u sedbytheAztecstomakea s p e c i a lchocolatedrink,which o n lynoblescouldafford.Until t h earrivaloftheSpanishin1519, c h o c o latewasunknownbeyond t h eAmericas.DiscussionQuestions •Asaclass,generatealistof thingsyouknowaboutfleas. L o o kcarefullyatthesculpture. W h a totherinformationabout fleascanyoulearnfromcareful o b servation? •Whymightsomeonefocuson s o m e thingastinyasafleaand c reateasculptureofitmagnified h u n d redsoftimes?Whymight thisthemehavebeenimportant toAztecartists?Whatanimals a reimportantincontemporary s o c i e ty?Whatartifactsmight laterexplorersfindfromthe21st c e n turythatincludereferences toanimals? 27
F u r therExplorations •Thissculptedflea,ona m o n u mentalscale,reflectsthe s k illofAztecstonecarversand t h e irabilitytocaptureminute d e tailsofinsectanatomyusing o n lystonetools.Bothartists a n dscientistslearnaboutthe n a turalworldthroughclose o b servation.Selectasmall, c o mplexnaturalobject.Adead i n s e c tisbestforthisexercise, b u tasmallflowerorseedcan a lsoserveasamodel.Closely o b serveyoursubject,usinga m a g n ifyingglassifyouhave o n e .Thenmakeadetailed d rawingonapieceofpaperthat i satleast9x12inches(largeris b e tter).Yourdrawingshouldfill t h eentirepage.Onceyouare d o n e ,makealistofthethings y o ulearnedaboutyoursubject b ydrawingit.•Studentscanexperiencethe p r o c e ssofcarvingbyusing asoftmateriallikeabarofsoap o rapotato.Abutterknife,plastic o rwoodenclaytools,and toothpickscanbeusedas i m p l e m e n t s .Choosesimpleforms s u c hasvegetablesandfruitsto m o d e l .TheAztecscreated e x c e l l e n texamplesintheform o fpumpkins,squashes,andcacti c a r vedfromstone.Thisproject i sbestdoneoutdoorsunder a d u l tsupervision. •Aztecgodssuchas Q u e tzalcoatl,the"feathered s e rpent,"frequentlytakea h y b ridform,inhiscaseasnake- b i r d ,combiningthefeaturesor q u a l i t i e softwoanimalsto e m p h a sizeaspectsofthedeity"s m ythicalorsupernatural p o w e r s.Whattwoanimals w o u l dyoucombinetocreate asupernaturalbeing?Sketch y o u rcreationandwritea d e s c riptionofthequalitiesthat thisnewcreaturewouldpossess. 6 B yexaminingAztecsculptures d e p ictingthehumanform,we s e eavividandimmediately r e c o g n i zableportraitofdailylife i nathrivingmetropolis.Instone a n dclaysculptorshavedepicted a nurbanepeopleinanascendant s o c i e tyinavarietyofposes: s t a n d ing,seated,kneeling, c rouching,orwearingan e laborateheaddress.Someare s t ylizedsuchasfertilityfiguresor f iguresofwarriors;otherlikethe s t o n esculptureofahunchback ( c a .1500)aremorenaturalistic, s a v o r ingtheparticular. A ztecartistsrarely,ifever, c reatedrealisticportraitsof i n d ividuals,insteadtheyrelied o nastandardrepertoireoffigure t y p e sandposes:seatedmale f igure,kneelingwoman,standing n u d e .Sincetheprimaryfunction o fAztecartwastoconvey m e a n ing,theimagerywas c o n ventionalized.Standardized t y p e sofhumanfigures r e p r e s e n tedrulers,warriors, p riests,andakindofeverymanfor c o mmonerfigures.Deitieswere i d e n tifiedbytheirdressandotheraccoutrements.BecauseAztec sculpturewasstandardized,itis sometimesinterpretedasbeing rigid,expressionless,stylized, c o n formingtoasetartistic formulaandestablished"rules" o frepresentation.
Atthesametime,theAztecshad
a nextensiveandhighlyscientific u n d e rstandingofthehumanbody, a n dsomeAztecsculpturesare verynaturalistic,displaying w rinkledforeheads,hunched b a c ks,andgap-toothedgrimaces a sevidencethatAztecartists c a refullyobservedtheirsubjects.
Aztecartistsdidrepresentthe
h u m a nforminawidevarietyof m e d i aandinasurprisingrange o fstyles.Amongthemostcommon representationsinthisexhibition a rethree-dimensionalsculptures o fthehumanforminstoneand c l a y .Thesesculpturesintheround representcommoners,warriors, g o d s,andgoddesses.
PeoplesandSocietiesoftheAztecWorld
2 9 1 3 H u n c h b a c k A z t e c , c a .1500 S t o n e ,33x17x12cm M u s e oNacionalde A n t r o p o l o g í a ,INAH, M e x i c oCity10-97 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías
FortheAztecs,thehumanbody
a n dspiritwereintimatelylinked t othenaturalandsupernatural w o rldaroundthem,sothestate o ftheirownbeingcouldhave adirectimpactontheir s u r roundings.Theaim,inall a spectsofAzteclife,wasto m a intainnaturalharmony.
Abalancedbodyandlifeultimately
l e dtoabalancedsocietyand u n iverse.Thereforemoderation w a sadvisedineverythingand e xcessesavoidedforfearof u p settingthecosmicequilibrium.HUNCHBACK T h i soldstonehunchbackwithhis b o n yribcageandshortlimbsisa p a rticularlygoodexampleofthe h o n e standoftenhumorousrealism forwhichAztecartistsaretoday a d m i red.Hewearsaloinclothand sportsthehairstylecharacteristic o fwarriors,withalockofhairtied w i thcottontasselsontheright sideofhishead. 3 0
DiscussionQuestions
•Whatismeantbythewords s tylizedandnaturalistic?Are thereaspectsofthisworkthat s e e mstylized?Whatarethey? W h ichaspectsseemmore n a turalistic?Explain. •Comparethishumanfigurewith s c u lpturalimagesofAztecgods includedinthisguide.Howdo theydiffer?Whataresome r e a sonsthattheymightbeso d ifferentinappearance?FurtherExplorations •Lookthroughamagazineor n e w spaperandfindexamples o fbothnaturalisticandstylized i m a g e s .Discusswhatattributes y o uconsideredinputtingthem ineachcategory. •Chooseasinglesubject.Itcan b eaperson,butitcanalsobe a n yothernaturalform,aflower, fruit,leaf,oranimal.Createtwo w o r ksbasedonthissubject, o n estylizedandtheother n a turalistic.Theworkcanbe three-dimensionaloritcanbe adrawing.Whichapproachdid y o uprefer?Why? 3 1 401
P e n d e n tintheshapeof awarrior A z t e c , a f t e r1325 C a s tgold-silver-copperalloy, 1 1 .
2x6.1cm
T h eClevelandMuseumofArt, L e o n a r dC.Hanna,Jr.Fund 1 9 8 4 . 3 7 P h o t o©TheCleveland M u s e u mofArt 7 L i kemanycivilizations,Aztec s o c i e tywashierarchicaland aperson"ssocialposition,and t h e r e foreone"swayoflife,was l a r g e lydeterminedbybirthright. C o mmonersworkedasfarmers, f ishermen,orcraftsmen.Noblemen s e r v e dasgovernmentofficials, s c r ibes,andteachers.Although t h eclassstructurewasreasonably r i g id,somesocialmobilitywas p o ssiblethroughentryintothe p riesthood,achievementin w a r fare,orsuccessintrade.The A ztecruler,however,hadtohave b e e nbornintotherightfamily. A stheonlyfigureallowedtowear t h epreciouscolorturquoise,he l ivedinasumptuouspalacewith s p e c t a c u l a rgardens,abanqueting h a ll,alargezoo,andgoldcutlery. A ttendedbyanabundanceof b o d yguardsandbeautifulwomen ( whohadtoapproachhimwith d o wncasteyesandbarefeet),the r u l e rpossessedanalmostgodlike s t a tus.Theruleratthetimeofthe S p a n ishinvasionwastheninth A ztecemperor,MotecuhzomaII, w h ocouldtracehisancestryback t othefirstruler,Acamapichtli. T omaintainhisluxuriouslifestyle,thegreatMotecuhzomademanded o n e -thirdofeverythinghispeople p roducedintaxes.Healso d e m a n d e dregularpayments, knownastribute,fromthesubjects o fconqueredprovinces.
Attheoppositeendofthesocial
h i e rarchywerepeasantfarmers, l a n d l e sscommoners,andslaves. T h e yhadfewrightsorluxuries a n dspenttheirlivesgrowingcrops forfoodandtribute.Aprivileged u p p e rclasswasformedbynobles a n dpriests,bothofwhomplayed a nimportantroleingovernment a n dlawmaking.Thehigherclasses w e redistinguishedbytheirfine d e c o ratedtextilesandsandals, w h i c hwereimportantsymbols o frank.Theylivedinpalatial c o m p l e xesandenjoyedobjectsof thefinestquality.Onlynobleswere a l l o w e dtowearclothesmadeof c o tton,andtheyfrequentlyadorned themselveswithintricate o rnaments-pendants,lipplugs, a n dearspools.Commonerswore c l o theswovenfromthemuch c o a rserfiberofthemagueyplant.
Belowthenobleswerethe
m e rchantsandskilledcraftsmen.
NobleLifeandEveryday
Life 33
Itwastothismiddleclassthat
p rofessionalwarriorsbelonged.
Youngboyswouldbeeducatedat
h o mebytheirparentsuntiltheage o f15,atwhichpointtheywould e itherbetrainedinwarfareorsent forpriestlyinstructioninwriting, p h ilosophy,andastronomy.(Girls wereeducatedathomeuntil15as well,butthenmarried.)Although a lreadyrespectedmembersof s o c iety,warriorscouldimprove theirrankbycapturinganever- g reaternumberofvictims,and wererewardedwithincreasingly impressivecostumesandprecious tributeitems. A lthoughwetendtothinkofgold a sthemostpreciousofmaterials, a sdidtheSpanishconquistadors, theAztecsdidnot.Theyworked thegoldintoexquisitepiecesof jewelry,butreferredtoitasthe e x c rementofthegods.Perhaps s u rprisinglytous,themost v e n e ratedmaterialwasfeathers. B rightlycoloredplumeswere g a thered,oftenfromfarmedbirds, a n dsenttoTenochtitlanastax p a y mentortribute.Theywere fashionedintoobjectsofgreatbeauty,suchasfans,shields,and h e a d d resses.Featherworkswere i n signiaofwealthandpower,and a nimportantelementoftheritual o u tfitofwarriors.Mosaicsmade o fshell,turquoise,andother stoneswerealsohighlyprized. 3 4 35
D iscussionQuestions •Thisfigurerepresentsawarrior whoholdsaserpent-headed s p e a r-throwerinonehandand ashield,darts,andbannerin theother.Expertsbelievethat h erepresentssomeoneofelite s tatus.Howcanyoutellthatthis warriorispartofarespected g r o u pwithinhissociety? •Stonefigures,claypots,and jadeornamentsaresomeof theobjectsthatpreserveour k n o wledgeofAzteccivilization. W h a tobjectsorimageswould y o uselecttorepresentlife today?Whydotheseobjects s e rveasavalidrepresentation o fcontemporarysociety? •Althoughonlynobleshad o b jectsmadefromprecious metalsandstones,allAztec h o meshadsmallshrinestothe g o d sthatmighthelptoprotect thefamily.Doyouhavereligious o b jectsinyourhome?Describe whattheyare,wheretheyare p laced,andhowtheyareused.FurtherExplorations •WithinAztecsocietyaperson"s statusandsocialclasswere c l e a rlydelineated.Lookthrough m a g a z i n esandnewspapersfor i n d i c a tionsofhowpeoplefrom variouslevelsofcontemporary societyaredepicted.Cutout yourexamplesandhaveaclass d i scussionaboutcurrent i n d i c a torsofstatus.Whatare c o n temporary"statussymbols"? •Readoverthesectionabove a n dwriteaparallelessay a b o u tsocialclassandstatus i ncontemporarysociety. 311
D e a dwarriorbrazier A z t e c ,ca.1500 F i r e dclayandpaint, 9
1x76x57.5cm
M u s e oNacionaldel V i r r e i n a t o ,INAH, T e p o t z o t l á n10-133646 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías 8 T h eAztecshadhundredsof d ifferentgodsandgoddesses- o n eforeveryaspectoftheirlives. T h evariousdeitieswerebelieved t oexertimmensepowerand i n fluenceovereverythingpeople d idand,asaresult,were w o r shippeddevoutlybyalllevels o fsociety,bothatdomesticshrines a n dalsoinelaboratepublicrituals. T h e seceremonies,ledbypriests w h ooften"became"godsduring t h eceremony,werehighly t h e a tricalanddramaticaffairs, i n tegratingfestivedancingin f a n tasticcostumeswithbloody h u mansacrifice,whichwas t h o u g h ttobenecessaryto c o n tinueandkeepinbalance t h ecycleoflifeanddeath. U n d e r lyingAztecreligiousbeliefs w a stheLegendoftheSuns,the e xplanationoftheoriginofthe u n iverse.Accordingtolegend,the u n iversehadbeencreatedand d e stroyedfourprevioustimes,and e a c hcreationformedanagecalled a"sun."Thefifthepochbeganin d a rkness.Thegodsgatheredat T e o tihuacan,andtwoofthem s a c r ificedthemselvesbyjumpingintoafireandrisingasthesunand themoon.Theremaininggodsthen s a c rificedthemselves,theirblood s e ttingthesunandmooninmotion. F romthenon,thedailymovement o fthesun,andthereforethe c o n tinuationoflifeitself,depended o nthenourishmentofthegods w i t hhumanblood. A l thoughAztecdeitiescanbe b r o a d l ydividedintomaleand female,thoseoflifeanddeath,and thoseofcreationanddestruction, theywerefarmorecomplexthan b e i n geitherpurelygoodorevil. M a n yweredualinnature, i n c o r p o ratingaparticularquality, g e n d e rorrole,withitsopposite. T h i sduality(doublenature) r e flectedoneofthedominant p r i n c i p l e sofAztecreligionand thought:thatthecosmoswas o r g a n i z e dintobinaryopposites, s u c hasnightandday,fireand w a t e r,coldandheat.
Inmanyways,Aztecgodsand
g o d d e s seswerejustlikeordinary m e nandwomen.Theyeachhad theirownpersonalityandwell- d e finedrole.Humansimpersonated G odsandRituals 3 7 thegodsatreligiousceremonies, b e c o mingthemforthattime. B e c ausethegodscouldtransform t h e mselvesintoearthlyforms, a lmosteverythingwasconsidered d ivine,fromthelowliestinsectto t h elargestmountain.Amongthe A ztecgodsandgoddesseswas asupremedeitycalledOmeteotl ( " twogod"),who,asbothfemale a n dmale,wastheembodimentof t h eAztecideaofdualityandwas r e s p onsibleforcreatingboth h u mansandgods. T h eAztecshadnoconceptof h e a venandhellasplacesof r e wardandpunishment.Instead, t h e yenvisionedthecosmosas d ividedintolayers,bothaboveand b e lowtheearth,eachofwhich r e c e i vedpeoplewhohaddieda p a rticulardeath.Ifyouhaddied b ydrowningorbeenstruckby l ightning,forexample,youended u ponthecelestial(heavenly) p lanegovernedbyTlaloc,therain g o d .Theninelevelsbeneaththe e a rth,collectivelyknownas M ictlan(theunderworld),were l e s swelcomingandwerewhere t h emajorityofAztecswentwhentheydied.Althoughitwasn"tquite a sgrimastheChristianconcept o fhell,thepeoplebanishedhere h a dtobravesuchhazardsas c l a shingmountainsandflying k n i vesmadefromobsidian,ablack v o l c a n i cglassthatissohardand s h a rpthattheAztecsuseditto m a keswords.
InAztecart,deitiescanbe
i d e n t i fiedthroughastandardset o faccoutrements,includingdress, h e a d w e a r ,facemarkings,jewelry, o rornamentation,andother a c c e s soriessuchasweapons. T e z c a t l i p o c a ,forexample,an a n c i e n tMexicansorcererand thegodofnightanddestiny,is g e n e r a l l ydepictedwithablack b a n dacrosshisnoseandface a n dawitheredfootthatendsin amirrormadeofobsidian. T e z c a t l i p o c a " snameactually m e a n s"smokingmirror"and i twassaidthat,withthis i n strument,hecouldseeand c o n trolwhatwashappening throughouttheuniverse. 3 8 39
D E
IFIEDWARRIORBRAZIER
T h isceremonialbrazier,or f irepot,wasdiscoveredduring t h econstructionoftheMetro i nMexicoCity,nearwherethe T e mploMayorhadpreviously s t o o d .Itdepictsthefiercely e xpressiveformofawarrior c rossingthethresholdofdeath, e itherkilledinbattleorsacrificed t othegods.Suchadeathwas h o n o rableandthesoulsofdead w a r riorswenttotheirown c e lestialplane,wheretheywere t h o u g h ttoaccompanythesunon i tsdailypathacrossthesky.The f igurewearsanenormouseagle h e lmetwithanopenbeak, i d e n tifiedwitheaglewarriors,one o fthemostdistinguishedmilitary o rdersthatcouldbeawardedtoa b raveAztecfighter.Theblack,red, a n dyellowdecorationandfacial p a intidentifyhimasapatronof y o u t h fulenergyandmilitary v i c tory,whilethe"haloofnine f e a thers"aroundtheupperpartof h isfaceevokestheplanesofthe u n d erworld.LikemanyotherAztec s c u l p tures(andmanybuildings), t h isbrazierwouldhavebeenlit d u ringreligiousceremonies.DiscussionQuestions •Whichcharacteristicsofthis sculptureseemwarrior-like?
Howwouldyoudepictabrave
w a rriorwhohadbeenkilledin abattle? •Comparethisfigurewiththe o thereaglewarriorpictured i nthisguide.Inwhatwaysdo p e o p l etodayhonorthememory o fthosewhohavebeenkilled i nwar?
FurtherExplorations
•Theexhibitioncontainsmany e xamplesofvesselsdecorated w i thimagesofgodsandpeople. W i thself-hardeningclaycreate avesseladornedwitha p e rsonage.Whendry,paintcan b eapplied.Rememberthatself- h a rdeningclaycanneverbe u sedasacontainerforfood. 335
X i u h m o l p i l l i(1Death) A z t e c , c a .1500 S t o n e , l .61cm,diam.26cm, M u s e oNacionalde A n t r o p o l o g í a ,INAH, M e x i c oCity10-220917 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías 9 A ztecsweregreatlyconcerned w iththepassageoftimeand d e visedsophisticatedcalendars a n delaboratecountingsystems t h a tregulatedtheirreligious, e c o n o mic,political,andsocial l ives.Twointerrelatedcalendars w e r eusedtomeasuretime. T h e365-daysolaroryearly c a lendarwascloselylinkedto t h eseasonsandtoagricultural a c tivitiessuchasharvesting. I twasmadeupof18"months"of 2
0days(360).Theremainingfive
d a ysweretackedontotheendof e a c hyearandconsideredvery u n lucky.Each'month"was d e d icatedtoaparticulardeity a n dwasdistinguishedbya d ifferentfeast.Althoughitalso r e g u l a tedhumanactivities,the 2 6 0 -dayritualcalendarwasmore r e l igiousinnature,particularly c o n c e rnedwithfateanddestiny. T h iscalendarconsistedoftwo w h e e ls,orrounds.Oneroundhad 1
3numberedpositions.Theother
h a d20positions,eachwitha n a medsign,suchasrabbit,house, o rcrocodile.Theinterlocking o fthesetworoundsproduced anumber-nameforeachday,suchas"1Rabbi,""2Water,"or "3Jaguar,"eachofwhichwas a ssociatedwithadifferentfate.
Aztecpeoplewerenamedafterthe
d a yoftheritualcalendaronwhich theywereborn.Itwasthoughtthat thefateofthisdaywouldaffect theirpersonaldestiny. W h e nthevariousnumbers a n dsignsofthesetwodifferent c a l e n d a rswereintegrated, theyproducedacombination thatwouldoccuronceevery
52yearsandmightbeconsidered
e q u i valenttoourcentury.Thiswas atimeofterrifyinguncertaintyfor theAztecs.Itwasmarkedwith aNewFireCeremony.Allfires w e reextinguishedandhousehold p o tssmashed,readyforrenewal. P riestswaitedontheoutskirts o fTenochtitlan.Atmidnightthey l i tanewfireinthechestcavity o facaptivewarrior,anditsflame w a sdistributedtotemplesand e ventuallytohouseholds.This c e remonyepitomizedtheconcept thatoutofhumansacrificecame l i fe,asacredaspectoftheduality o fdeathandrebirth. M a nuscriptsandCalendars 41
42
X
IUHMOLPILLI
T h exiuhmolpilli,meaning"year b u n d le,"isastonemonument c reatedtocommemorateaNew F i reCeremony.Asitsname s u g g e s ts,itrepresentsabundle o f52reeds,tiedwithropeand c o veredwithasymbolofthefinal y e a r .Duringtheceremony,52of t h e s ebundleswereburned. T h eAztecsbelievedthattheworld h a dalreadybeencreatedand d e stroyedfourtimesbefore,and t h a ttheirFifthWorldwasalso d o o med.Itwasthoughtthatthis r itualofrenewalwouldpreventthe d e structionoftheworldafifth t ime.ThelastNewFireCeremony b e forethearrivaloftheSpanish t o o kplacein1507.DiscussionQuestions •Whenthemillenniumyear2000 wasapproaching,therewere s p e c u l a tionsaboutpossible c a tastrophes,aswellasmajor c e l e b rations.Researchboth a spectsofthecommemoration o ftherecentmillennium.How d i dcontemporaryobservances p a rallelordifferfromAztec traditions? •Inmanywaysthedescription o fAztecbeliefsaboutthefate o fpeoplebeingdetermined b ythecalendarseemssimilar toastrology.Doyoubelieve thatthemonth,day,andtime whenapersonisbornaffects theirfate?Doyouthinkthere a reluckyandunluckydays? E xplainyouranswer. •Thisstonemonument c o m m e m o ratedaspecial c e remonialeventinthelivesof theAztecs.Whatspecialevents h a veoccurredduringyour lifetime?Howhavetheybeen c o m m e m o rated? 43
F u rtherExplorations •Theendofeach52-yearAztec " c e n tury"wasconsidereda p e r iodofterribledangerwhen t h eworldcouldcometoanend. N oonewassureifthesun w o u ldriseagain.Althoughtoday w emayviewsuchbeliefsas i rrational,superstitioncontinues t opervade,evenincontemporary c u l ture.Withyourclass, b r a instormalistofsuperstitions. S o m eexamplesinclude, " F ridaythethirteenth,"and " thecurseoftheBambino." R e s e a r c handreportonthe h i storybehindtheseideasand w h ytheycontinue. 526
L i f e - D e a t hfigure(Apotheosis) H u a x t e c , c a .900-1250 S t o n e , 1 5
8x67x22.9cm
B r o o k l y nMuseumofArt, H e n r yL.BattermanFundand t h eFrankShermanBenson F u n d ,37.2897PA P h o t o©BrooklynMuseum o fArt 1 0 F r o mthe14ththrough16th c e n turiesAztecsdominated c e n tralandsouthernMexico a n destablishedanelaborate a n dwide-rangingempire. A stheAztecsgrewinnumber, t h e ydevelopedsuperiormilitary a n dcivilorganizations. T h eAztecsformedmilitary a llianceswithothergroups, c reatinganempirethatextended f r o mcentralMexicotothe G u a temalanborder.Bytheend o fthereignofMotecuhzomaIIin 1 5 2
0,38tributaryprovinceshad
b e e nestablished;however,some o fthetribesatthefringesofthe A ztecempireremainedfiercely i n d e p e n d e n t. A ztecrulersapproachedwar s o m e whatdifferentlythanwedo t o d a y.Therewerevariedreasons f o rwarfare.Aninsult,atributethat h a dnotbeenpaidoranattackon A ztectraderscouldtriggera m ilitaryresponse.TheAztecs d idnotlaunchsurpriseattacks, n o rdidtheyfightduringcertain s e a s o n soratnight.Declarations o fwarbeganbysendingambassadorstothecitythey p l a n n e dtoattack.Theywouldask thecityleaderstobecomeallies b ypayingtribute,tradingwith theAztecs,andputtingastatue o ftheirgodHuitzilopochtliintheir temple.Theyhadtwentydaysto d e c i d ewhethertheywould c o m p l y .Ifthecityrefused,more a m b a ssadorsarrived.Thistime thetalkwastougher,lessabout theadvantagesofjoiningthe
Aztecsandmoreaboutthe
d e structionanddeath,which c a m etoanycitythatdidnot submit.Toshowhowconfident theywereabouttheoutcomeof a n yfuturewar,theAztecsgave theenemychiefweapons,and m o rewarnings.Ifthisdidnot w o rk,athirdembassyarrived twentydayslater.Politetalkwas replacedbybloodcurdlingthreats a b o u twhatwouldhappenafter thecitylostthewar.Thisincluded d e structionofthecity"stemple, e n slavementofpopulation,and apromisethatcripplingtribute w o u l dbedemandedforyearsto c o m e .Ifthecitystillrefusedto j o i ntheAztecs,thewarbegan. T h roughallofthesenegotiations, C ulturesSubjugatedBytheAztecs 4 5 theAztecshadtimetogain informationandplanhowtobest a ttackthecity.Priestsdecidedon theluckiestdaytostartthebattle, s o ldierspreparedforwar,thearmy s e tout,andthebattlesbegan. U s u allytheAztecswonquickly. T h e ytookasmanyprisonersas p o s sibleforsacrifice,destroyed thelocaltemplesanddecidedon thetributetobepaid.Thenthey madethelocalpeopleworship H u itzilopochtliandrespectthe A z tecemperor.Tributewaspaid regularly,orelseanotherbattle wouldoccur. D iscussionQuestions •HowdoAztecwartacticsand s t rategiesdifferfromthose u sedtoday?Arethereparts t h a tseemeffective?Ineffective?
Ifyouwerecounselingthe
A ztecsonmilitarystrategy,what s u g g e s tionswouldyoumake? •Ifyouwerepartofaneighboring g roupwhattacticswould y o usuggesttoavoidbeing c o n q u e red?LIFE-DEATHFIGURE T h i sLife-Deathfigurewas c r e a tedbytheHuaxtec,apeople w h oweredefeatedbytheAztec a r m i e saround1450andhenceforth p a i dtributetotheAztecempire.
Itisanexcellentembodimentof
aconceptthatranthrough M e soamericancultures;the c o n c e p tofduality.Thislife-size s c u l p turerepresentsayouthful m a l ewearingornamentsanda c l o t hknottedaroundhiswaist,but w h e nweexaminetheotherside o fthisfigurewefindaskeletal figurewithitsribcageandinternal o r g a n sexposed. T h eHuaxteclanguageisstill s p o keninMexicotoday,especially i nruralareas,andthepeople r e taincharacteristictraditions i ntheirmusicanddance.
ItisestimatedthattheHuaxtec
p o p u l a t i o ninMexiconumbers a p p r o ximately80,000people. 4 6 47
D iscussionQuestions •Dividetheclassintotwogroups. E a c hgroupshouldcomposea l istofwordsthatdescribeone s i d eofthesculpture.When c o mplete,postbothlists.Are t h e r ewordsineachlistthatcan b ecombinedtodemonstratethe c o n c e p tofduality?Arethere o thercombinationsthatsuggest o therqualitiesinthissculpture? •Aresomedualitiesstillpartof o u rcontemporarylife?Doyou f e e lthisconceptisstill i mportantorhasitbeenreplaced b yotherideas.Explain.FurtherExplorations •Althoughweseethefrontand b a c kofthisworkinthe p h o tograph,makeadrawing thatshowshowitmightlook fromtheside-inprofile.Ifyou a revisitingthemuseumduring theexhibition,bringthedrawing w i thyou,sothatyoucan c o m p a reyourconceptionwith yourobservationsinthegallery. •Considertheconceptofduality a n dcreateadrawing,poem, e ssay,sculpture,orother p e rsonalexpressionofthis p e rvasivetheme. 11 T othewest,thePurepechapeople, c a lledTarascanbytheSpanish, f lourishedfrom1100to1530. T h ecenteroftheTarascan E mpirewastheircapitalcityof T z intzuntzan.Fromthisreligious a n dadministrativecenter,the T a rascanswagedwaragainst t h e irenemies,theAztecs. P roductssuchashoney,cotton, f e a thers,salt,gold,andcopper w e r ehighlyprizedbythe T a rascans.Neighboringregions t h a tpossessedthesecommodities q u icklybecameaprimarytargetof t h e irmilitaryexpansion.When c o n q u e red,thepeoplesofthese r e g i o n swereexpectedtopay t r ibutesofmaterialgoodstothe T a rascanlord. T h eAztecsattemptedmorethan o n c etoconquertheTarascan l a n d s ,butneversucceeded.This l e fttheAztecswithamajorrivalon t h e irwesternborder.Incombat t h e yrepeatedlysufferedgrievous l o s sestotheTarascanarmies.For e xample,in1478therulingAztec l o r d ,Axayacatl,marchedagainst t h eTarascans.Hefoundhisarmyof24,000confrontedbyan o p p o singforceofmorethan40,000 T a rascanwarriors.Aferocious b a ttlewentonallday.Manyof theAztecwarriorswerebadly w o u n d e dbyarrows,stones, spears,andswordthrusts.The followingday,theAztecswere forcedtoretreat,havingsuffered thelossofmorethanhalfoftheir e l i tewarriors. T h earrivaloftheSpanishcaptain
HernánCortésandhismenonthe
e a stcoastofMexicoinApril1519 l e dtotheendofboththeAztec a n dtheTarascanEmpires. K n o w i n gthattheSpaniardswere o ntheirwaytotheAzteccapital o fTenochtitlan,theAztecssent e m i ssariestotheTarascanstoask forhelp.Insteadofproviding a ssistance,theysacrificedthe
Aztecmessengers.Tenochtitlanfell
i n1521afterabloodysiege. T h eTarascans"turncamein1522. T h elastTarascanking,Tangaxoan
II,offeredlittleresistance.Oncehe
submitted,alltheotherTarascan realmssurrenderedpeacefully.
Aftertheconquest,Spanish
m i ssionariesorganizedthe T h eTarascanEmpire 4 9 6 2 5 C h a c m o o l T a r a s c a n , c a .1250-1521 S t o n e , 8
4x150x48cm
M u s e oNacionalde A n t r o p o l o g í a ,INAH, M e x i c oCity10-1609 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías 50
T a r a scanEmpireintoaseriesof c raft-orientedvillages,andtoday t h eareaaboundswith c raftspeopleskilledinwood, c o p p e r,cloth,andclay. W h yisn"ttheTarascanempire b e tterknown?UnliketheAztecs, t h eTarascansleftnopersonal d o c u mentaryhistories.Withoutthe a ssistanceofSpanishmissionary- h istoriansdedicatedtowriting d o wntheirstory,muchoftheir h istorywaslost.However, a rchaeologicalexcavationsanda s i g n ificantbodyofpottery,copper, a n dstoneobjectsaffordsusa g limpseintothelivesofthisstrong a n dhighlydevelopedcivilization.DiscussionQuestion •Withnewtechnologiesthere a remanywaystopreserve h i story.Namesomeofthe institutionsandtechnologies thathelppreservehistory forfuturegenerations.Also c o n siderwaysthateventoday importanthistoriescanbelost o robliterated.
CHACMOOL
T h etermchacmoolreferstoa s t yleofsculpture,representing amalefigureinaspecificpose: s e a t e donthegroundwithits u p p e rbackraised,theheadis t u r n e dtoanearrightangle,the l e g saredrawnup,elbowsreston t h eground.Thereceptacleheldon t h estomachisthoughttobefor s a c r ificialofferings.Chacmool f igureshavebeenfoundattemples t h r o u g h o u tMesoamerica s u g g e s tingthatthissculptural f o r mwasimportanttoseveral c ivilizations,includingMayan, T o l tec,Aztec,andTarascan.DiscussionQuestion •ThestyleofthisTarascanfigure d i ffersfromthoseoftheAztecs. C h o o seanotherfigureinthis g u i d eandcompareandcontrast thestyleofthetwoworks. •Taketheposeofthechacmool figure.Describehowitfeelsto a ssumethispose.Whatareas o fyourbodyareintension?Even thoughyouarereclining,doyou feelrelaxed?Whatwordscan youfindtodescribeyour a ssociationswiththispose?
FurtherExplorations
•Althoughtheydisplayasimilar p o se,chacmoolfiguresindifferent styleshavebeenfoundinmany
Mesoamericancultures.Research
o therchacmoolfiguresand,using thatinformation,designonethat youthinkmightbediscoveredin futurearchaeologicalexcavations. 5 1 52
12 O nNovember8,1519,theAztec w o r ldchangedforeverwhena g roupofSpanishconquistadores, l e dbyHernánCortés,arrivedat T e n o c h titlantomeetMotecuhzoma I
I.TheninthAztecrulerhadknown
o ftheimpendingarrivalofwhite m e nfromtheeastforanumberof y e a r sandhadsentmessengers t otheGulfCoasttobringnews o fthesestrangers,whose a p p roachingshipsappearedto t h eAztecsashousesfloating o nthesea.Uponhisarrival, M o t e c u h z o mainvitedCortésto T e n o c h titlan,perhapsinthebelief t h a thewasQuetzalcoatl,theruler- p riestandgodwhohadbeen b a n ishedandwho,accordingto l e g e n d ,wouldreturnfromtheeast. C o rtésandMotecuhzomameton o n eofthecausewaysthatlinked T e n o c h titlantothemainland. H e r etheyexchangedwordsand g ifts.Treatedlikegods,theSpanish w e r ewelcomedinTenochtitlan, acitywhosebeautyand s o p h i sticationoverwhelmed t h e m.Theywereuncertainof M o t e c u h z o ma"sintentionshowever, a n d ,awarethattheywereoutnumbered,theysoonbetrayed theAztecrulerandtookhim h o stage.Inresponse,theAztecs a ttackedtheSpaniards,resulting i nawarinwhichbothsides sustainedheavycasualties.
Motecuhzomadiedduringthe
fighting,possiblykilledbyhisown p e o p l eastheythrewstonesatthe c o n q u i stadores.Indesperation, theSpanishfinallyfledthecityby m o o n l i g h tonlateJune1520,an o c c a sionthathascometobe knownastheNocheTriste(Sad N i g h t)bytheSpanish. T h efollowingyeara900-strong S p a n i sharmyreturned,beginning anearly3-month-longsiege thatclaimedmanyAzteclives throughintensefighting,starvation, a n ddisease.Afterfierce resistance,theAzteccapital T e n o c h titlanfinallyfelltoCortés o nAugust13,1521. T h eSpanishconquestcanbe a ttributedtoseveralfactors,among themweretheirsuperiorweapons, w h i c hincludedfirearmsandsteel swords,andtheirmilitarytactics, w h i c h ,unlikeAztecwarfare, T h eTwilightoftheEmpire 5 3 5 9 8 L i e n z odeQuetzpalan C o l o n i a l - P u e b l a , l a t e16thcentury C o t t o nandpigments, 1 5
4x183x53cm
F u n d a c i ó nCulturalTelevisa, M e x i c oCityREG21PJ403 P h o t o :MichelZabé,assistant E n r i q u eMacías focusedonactuallykillingthe e n e my(ratherthancapturingthem a livetobesacrificedtothegods l a ter).Cortésalsoexploited u n d e rlyingtensionsbetween T e n o c h titlanandothercities. H ewashelpedinhisnegotiations w iththeAztecsbyaninterpreter, a nindigenouswoman,Malintzin, w h o mtheSpaniardsrenamed M a rinaandisknowntodayin M e x icoasLaMalinche. A smightbeexpectedconsidering t h econvictionwithwhichtheyhad p racticedtheirownreligion p reviously,theAztecs"conversion t oChristianitywasaslowand g radualprocess.Forawhile,the t woreligionsexistedsomewhat u n e a silytogetherastheAztecs w e reforcedtorelinquishtheir m a n ygodsandgoddessesinfavor o fonesupremedeity.Despitethe e ventualsuccessoftheChristian m ission,someAztecidolswere s t illbeingworshippedmorethan 3 0
0yearslater.FurtherExplorations
•ThemeetingbetweenCortés a n dMotecuhzomaIImarked theencounterbetweentwo d i fferentcivilizationswhoknew littleofeachother.Dividethe c l a ssinhalf:onehalfwill r e p resenthowMotecuhzomaII a n dhisarmiessawtheinvaders; therestshouldimagine themselvesastheSpanish e xpedition.Writescriptsthat d e m o n stratedisparatepoints o fview,andthenstagea meetingenvisioningwhattook p l a c einNovember1519,along thecausewayleadingtothe A z teccapitol. 5 4
CODICES
M u c hofwhatweknowaboutthe A ztecscomesfromtheirbeautiful, h a n d -paintedmanuscripts,or c o d ices(singular:codex). I ntheircodices,Aztecpainter- s c r ibesusedaformofpicture w r iting,whichresembledthe a n c ientEgyptians"hieroglyphics o rthemodern-daycomic.This " w riting"includedpictograms, p h o n e ticsigns,religiousemblems, a n devenmathematicalsymbols. D u r ingtheinitialyearsofSpanish r u l e ,manycodiceswere d e stroyed,especiallythosethat d o c u mentedAztecrituals.Today o n lyafewpre-Hispanicpainted b o o ksfromMexicosurvive. T h iscodex,knownastheLienzoof Q u e tzpalan,wasproducedaspart o falarge-scalegeographicsurvey o fMexicoorderedbytheSpanish g o vernmentinthe1570s.DiscussionQuestions •Examinethepagefromthe c o d e x,LienzoofQuetzpalan.
Howmanysymbols(glyphs)can
youdecipher?Whichsymbols a redifficulttoequatewith ameaning?Trytoconstruct anarrativethatdescribeswhat i sbeingdepicted.
FurtherExplorations
•Topracticecommunicatingusing g l yphs,tryagameofPictionary® (picturecharades).Dividethe c l a ssinhalf.Eachteamshould w riteasetofsecretwordsthat theotherteamwilltrytoguess.
Movie,play,andsongtitlesare
somepossiblecategories.
Aplayertriestodrawsymbols
thatwillgettheirteamtoguess c o rrectly.Notalkingorwritten w o rdsallowed. •Manycodicesdocument h i storicalinformationandevents. C h o o seasubjectandcreate asetofgraphicsymbols(glyphs) toillustrateyourcodex. 5 5 56
C A C A
OChocolate.
C A
LPULLI(cal-PUL-li)Aform
o fkin-basedcommunalliving p racticedinTenochtitlan. C A U S E
WAYSRaisedroadsor
p a thwaysacrosswater. C H
INAMPAS(chi-NAM-pahs)
A ztecfloatinggardensmadefrom r e c laimedswampland. C O D E
XAnAztecbookofpicture
s y mbols.Thepluraliscodices. E
MPIREAgroupofcountriesor
s t a tes,ruledbyasingle g o vernmentoremperor. G L Y P
HApicturesymbolstanding
f o rawordoridea. H U
ITZILPOCHTLI(huit-zi-lo-
P O C H T -li)Sungodandgodofwar. M A
GUEY(MA-guey)Atypeof
c a c tusplantthatprovidedcloth a n dfoodfortheAztecs.MESOAMERICATermusedto d e s c ribethecentralregionof theAmericasinhabitedbynative c i vilizationsbeforethearrivalof theSpanish. M E X
ICAS(Mah-SHEE-kahs)
P e o p l eoftheAztecempire. M
ICTLANTECUHTLI(mict-lan-te-
C U
H-tli)LordofMictlan,the
u n d e r w o rld. M
OSAICAdesignmakefromsmall
p i e c e sofstoneorcoloredglass. M
OTECUHZOMAII(mo-te-cuh-ZO-
m a )TheninthAztecruleratthe timeoftheConquest. N
OBLEApersonofhighbirth,
s u c hasalord. N
AHUATL(NAH-hua-tl)
T h elanguagespokenbythe A z tecsandstillspokentodayby s o m egroupsofCentralHighland M e xico.Avocado(aguacatl)and tomato(tomatl)areNahuatlwords.
Vocabulary
57
N A T
URALISTICThesuggestion,
inaworkofart,ofthedirect o b s e rvationofasceneorfigure.
OBSIDIANHardvolcanicglass
thattheAztecsusedforweapon b lades. P R E C
OLUMBIANTheperiod
o ftimebeforethearrivalof C h r istopherColumbustothe N e wWorldin1492.
QUETZALCOATL(quet-zal-CO-a-tl)
"
Featheredserpent,"important
p a n -
Mesoamericandeity.
S
ACRIFICETokillananimalor
p e r sonasanofferingtothegods. S C R
IBEApersonwhowrites
d o c u mentsandbooksbyhand. S T Y L
IZEDThesimplificationor
g e n e r a lizationofformsfound innature. T E M P
LOMAYOR(TEM-plomay-
OR)TheGreatTempleof
T e n o c h titlan.TENOCHTITLAN(Te-noch-TIT-lan) T h ecapitalcityoftheAztec e m p i re. T
LALOC(TLA-loc)Godofrain.
T R
IBUTEAtypeoftaxpaidinfood
a n dothergoods.
UNDERWORLDTheplacewhere
theAztecsbelievedpeoplewent w h e ntheydied. X
IPETOTEC(Shee-peTOH-tec)
Godofrenewalandrebirth.
58
Intheinterestofsimplifyingthe
textofthisguide,footnoteshave b e e neliminated.Grateful a c k n o wledgmentismadetothe a u thorsofthefollowingworksfor theircontributionstothecontent o fthisguide.
NinaMiall.Aztecs:AnIntroduction
totheExhibition.London:Royal A c a d e myofArts,2002. E d u a r d oMatosMoctezumaand F e lipeSolís.Aztecs.NewYork: H a rryN.Abrams,Inc.,2002. R ichardF.Townsend.TheAztecs. L o n d o n :ThamesandHudson,2000.ForAdults G o rdonBrotherston.Painted B o o ksfromMexico.London: B ritishMuseumPress,1995. D a vídCarrasco.DailyLifeofthe A z tecs:PeopleoftheSunand E a rth.Westport,Conn.:Greenwood P ress,1998. M i c h a e lD.Coe.Mexico:Fromthe O l m e c stotheAztecs.NewYork: T h a m e sandHudson,2002. M i g u e lLeón-Portilla.Aztec T h o u g h tandCulture.Translated b yJackEmoryDavis.Norman: U n i versityofOklahomaPress, 1 990.
E d u a rdoMatosMoctezuma. T h eGreatTempleoftheAztecs: T reasuresofTenochtitlan.London: T h a m e sandHudson,1994. M a ryEllenMiller.TheArtof M e soamericafromOlmecto A z tec.London:Thamesand H u d son,1996.
BibliographyandSuggestedResources
59
M a ryEllenMillerandKarlTaube.
AnIllustratedDictionaryofthe
GodsandSymbolsofAncient
M e xicoandtheMaya.London: T h a mesandHudson,1997. E s therPasztory.AztecArt. N e wYork:HarryN.Abrams,Inc., 1 998.
P a triciaRieffAnawaltandFrances F .Berdan.TheEssentialCodex M e n d o z a.Berkeley:Universityof C a liforniaPress,1997. F e lipeSolís.TheAztecEmpire. N e wYork:GuggenheimMuseum a n dMexicoCity:Landucci E d itores,2004. T h e lmaD.SullivanandT.J.Knab.
AScatteringofJades:Stories,
P o e msandPrayersoftheAztecs. N e wYork:Simon& S c h u s ter/Touchstone,1994.ForChildren E l i z a b e thBaquedano.Aztec,
Inca&Maya.London:Dorling
K i n d e rsley,1993. P e terHicks.TheAztecs.NewYork: T h o m sonLearning,1993.
FionaMacdonald.HowWouldYou
S u rviveasanAztec?Danbury, C o n n . :FranklinWatts,1997. N e i lMorris.UncoveringHistory E verydayLifeofTheAztec,Incas, &Maya.Florence,Italy:McRae
BooksSrl,2003.
P h i l i pSteele.Aztec-News:The
GreatestNewspaperinCivilization.
C a m b ridge,Mass.:Candlewick P ress,1997. T i mWood.TheAztecs.NewYork: V i kingPenguin,1992. 60
Websites
h ttp://anthro.amnh.org D e p a rtmentofAnthropology,AmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory www.famsi.org F o u n d a tionfortheAdvancementofMesoamericanStudies www.archaeology.org A rchaeologyMagazine,ArchaeologicalAssociationofAmerica h ttp://copan.bioz.unibas.ch/mesolinks.html h ttp://www.atlanticava.org/WebandCamSites/AztecsIncasMyans.htm P recolumbianArchaeologyRelatedLinks h ttp://library.thinkquest.org/27981/god.html h ttp://www.mexicolore.co.uk/azt_pron.htm P rovidesaudiopronunciationforselectedAztecgodsandNahuatlwords
Videos
InSearchofHistory:TheAztecEmpire
NewYork:A&ETelevisionNetworks,1997
C o lor,50min E mpiresoftheAmericas:AJourneyBackinTime
NewJersey:Kultur,2000
C o lor,50min 61
T h eSacklerCenterforArts E d u c a tionisaninteractive-media facilitydedicatedtoexploring themuseum"scollectionsand e x h ibitionsandmodernand c o n temporaryartingeneral. T h eSacklerCenterforArts E d u c a tionisagiftoftheMortimer
D.SacklerFamily.
E d u c a tionalactivitiesaremade p o s siblebyTheEdithandFrances M u lhallAchillesMemorialFund, T h eEngelbergFoundation,William R a n d o lphHearstFoundation,and T h ePeterJaySharpFoundation. P r o jectManagement S h a r o nVatsky,SeniorEducation M a n a g e r E d itedbyStephenHobanand E lizabethFranzen
DesignedbyJaniceLeeSpecialThanks
WearegratefultoNinaMiall,
P u b l i cProgramsManagerat theRoyalAcademyofArts,for g rantingpermissiontoadapt e d u c a tionalmaterialswritten fortheexhibitionAztecs.
Forcuratorialinsightsandreview:
MarionKocot,ProjectManager,
T h eAztecEmpire.
Foreducationalinsightsandreview:
K i mKanatani,GailEngelberg, D i rectorofEducation R e b e c c aHerz,EducationManager J e ssicaWright,EducationManager S a rahSelvidge,EducationIntern
Dr.GeorgeRappaport,Professor
E m e ritus,WagnerCollege
Creditsand
HonoraryTrusteesinPerpetuity
S o lomonR.Guggenheim J u s tinK.Thannhauser P e g g yGuggenheim H o n o raryChairman P e terLawson-Johnston C h a irman P e terB.Lewis
Vice-Presidents
W e n d yL-J.McNeil S tephenC.Swid J o h nS.Wadsworth,Jr. D irector T h o masKrens S e c r e tary E d wardF.Rover H o n o raryTrustee C laudePompidou T rusteesExOfficio D a v idGallagher D a k isJoannou D irectorEmeritus T h o masM.MesserTrustees J o nImanolAzua P e terM.Brant
MarySharpCronson
GailMayEngelberg
DanielFilipacchi
MartinD.Gruss
FrederickB.Henry
DavidH.Koch
T h o m a sKrens P e terLawson-Johnston P e terLawson-JohnstonII P e terB.Lewis
HowardLutnick
W i l l i a mL.Mack
WendyL-J.McNeil
E d w a rdH.Meyer V l a d i m i rO.Potanin
FrederickW.Reid
S tephenM.Ross
MortimerD.A.Sackler
DeniseSaul
T e rrySemel J a m e sB.Sherwood R a j aW.Sidawi S e ymourSlive J e n n i ferStockman S tephenC.Swid J o h nS.Wadsworth,Jr.
MarkR.Walter
J o h nWilmerding 6 2 T H
ESOLOMONR.GUGGENHEIM
F O U N D A T ION Chair
GailMayEngelberg
M e mbers E lizabethBader
AnnaDeveareSmith
L e sleyM.Friedman R e b e c c aGrafstein
AlanC.Greenberg
R o s lalindG.Jacobs M a u reenLee
WyntonMarsalis
W e n d yL-J.McNeil E lihuH.Modlin P a lomaPicasso S u z a n n ePlotch K a theA.Sackler
GabrielaSerna
VivianSerota
E lizabethR.Varet P e terYarrow 6 3 S
OLOMONR.GUGGENHEIM
E
DUCATIONCOMMITTEE2004