The Aztecs

Michael E. Smith is Professor of Anthropology in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. He has directed excavations at numerous Aztec sites and is co-editor (with Marilyn Masson) of The Ancient Civilizations of Mesoamerica: A Reader (Blackwell, 1999) and author of Aztec City-State Capitals (University Press of Florida, 2008).

List of Figures x List of Tables xiv Preface xv Guide to Pronunciation and Spelling xviii 1 The Aztecs of Mesoamerica 1 Who Were the Aztecs? 3 Mesoamerican Context 5 The Aztec Environment 7 Sources of Information 12 Ethnohistory 13 Archaeology 20 Art History 27 Aztec Studies Today 28 2 The Rise of Aztec Civilization 30 Timetables 31 Pre-Aztec Civilizations 33 The Aztlan Migrations 36 Toltecs, Chichimecs, and Aztec Identity 39 The Growth of City-States: The Early Aztec Period 40 Tenochtitlan and Empire: The Late Aztec Period 46 3 People on the Landscape 60 How Many Aztecs? 61 The Aztec Diet 65 Farming Systems 69 Rural Settlement 77 The Rural Landscape 81 4 Artisans and their Wares 82 Utilitarian Crafts 82 Luxury Crafts 94 Otumba: An Aztec Craft Center 103 5 The Commercial Economy 108 Marketplaces 109 Money 116 Material Evidence for Aztec Commerce 119 A Complex Economy 124 6 Family and Social Class 127 Growing up Aztec 128 Adult Life and Social Roles 131 Social Classes 134 Commoners 135 Nobles and their Palaces 143 7 City-State and Empire 152 City-States 153 Relations Among City-States 159 The Empire of the Triple Alliance 163 Imperial Strategies and Control 165 Mexica Propaganda and the Limits of Empire 177 8 Cities and Urban Planning 179 City-State Capitals 180 Provincial Cities and Towns 184 Tenochtitlan 189 9 Creation, Death, and the Gods 197 Myths of Creation 198 Aztec Religion: Historical Background 201 The Gods 204 Death, Burial, and the Afterlife 211 10 Temples and Ceremonies 217 Priests 217 Human Blood Offerings 219 The Templo Mayor 225 Public Ceremonies 235 Private Rituals 239 11 Science, Writing, and Calendars 244 Writing 244 Calendars and Astronomy 249 Technology 259 Medicine 260 12 Art, Music, and Literature 263 Art 263 Literature and Poetry 271 Music and Dance 274 13 Final Glory, Conquest, and Legacy 278 The Final Century: 1428-1519 279 Conquest by Spain 282 The Nahuas under Spanish Rule 290 Continuity and Change 296 The Aztec Legacy: Modern Nahua Indian Culture 298 The Aztec Past and the Mexican Present 300 A Wider Perspective 303 Notes 305 Glossary of Nahuatl Terms 337 References 339 Index 385