AZTECS EXHIBITION – PUBLICITY IMAGES
These images are provided for one time use only and only in conjunction with the Aztecs exhibition at the Australian
Museum from 13 September 2014 – 1 February 2015.
Images 1. & 2. Eagle warrior sculpture 1440–69
Fired clay, stucco, pigment
On loan from Museo del Templo Mayor
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
The eagle warriors were an elite military order and greatly feared. They were usually nobles but could also be lowerborn warriors who had taken many prisoners. In battle they wore the regalia of these sacred animals which they
believed gave them supernatural powers. Eagles were associated with the sun, war and human sacrifice – all forces of
male energy. They were among the most frequently sculpted creatures in Aztec culture. Here, the large figure wearing
an eagle helmet is thought to represent the soul of a dead warrior escorting the sun.
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Images 3. & 4. Mictlantecuhtli (God of Death) about 1480
Fired clay, stucco
On loan from Museo del Templo Mayor
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
The god of death, Mictlantecuhtli (Mict-lan-teh-koot-lee), ushered the dead towards his sacred realm, Mictlan – the
underworld. His wife, Mictecacíhuatl (Mict-eh-ka-see-wah-tl), goddess of death, looked after their bones which were
used as ‘seeds’ to create new people. In this representation, Mictecacíhuatl shows his claws and bared teeth, half the
flesh is ripped from his body and his liver (the seat of the soul) hangs out.
Image 5. Sculpture of Xiuhtecuhtli (God of Fire and Guardian of Merchants)
Aztec, 1469–81
Basalt
On loan from Museo del Templo Mayor
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
Merchants supplied luxury and everyday products throughout the empire and beyond. They were a diverse group –
including importers, wholesalers, retailers and slave traders – but all were guided by the guardian god Xiuhtecuhtli
(She-oo-tay-koot-lee).
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Image 6. Sculpture of Cihuateotl (See-wah-tay-otl), divine woman about 1500s
Aztec stone
On loan from Museo del Templo Mayor
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
If a woman died during childbirth, she was considered a fallen warrior and ‘divine woman.’ Mictlan, the underworld,
was not her final resting place. Instead, she travelled to the magnificent House of the Sun. She accompanied the war
god Huitzilopochtli as he traversed the sky in the afternoon in his guise as the sun. A glorious rebirth awaited her in four
years. On five unlucky days of the year, divine women became terrifying night spirits who haunted crossroads, stealing
children to compensate for their loss. See the clawed hands, preparing to pounce.
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Image 7. Sculpture of Chalchiuhtlicue (Goddess of Agriculture)
Aztec, 1250–1521
Andesite tuff
Photo © Colección Fundación Televisa
The hands of Chalchiuhtlicue (Chal-chuh-weet-lee-kway), goddess of rivers and lakes, have been fashioned to hold
flowers or cobs of corn. These were the fruits of the rains that her husband, Tláloc, sent from the heavens. Adorning
her with them helped ensure abundance.
Image 8. Snake warrior sculpture
Aztec, about 1500
Basalt
On loan from Museo Arqueológico del Estado – Teotenango ‘Dr Román Piña Chan’
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
The snake warriors were a select military group. This figure, with his snake-head helmet and reptilian skin, once
grasped a banner in his left hand – one that probably identified the group.
Image 9. Sculpted head with lip plug
Aztec, 1250–1521
Basalt
On loan from Museo Nacional de Antropología
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
This warrior must have captured many enemies to have earned the right to wear his lip plug and headdress – riches
normally reserved for nobles. His elongated earlobes suggest that he wore ear spools of precious metal. Lip plugs were
bestowed in public ceremonies. A priest incised the lower lip before inserting the plug, which could be made of
obsidian, turquoise or gold. To keep the plug in place, the wearer held an aggressive pout.
Image 10. Sculpture of a dog about 1500
Aztec, Stone
On loan from Museo Regional de Puebla
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
When a person died, if they had a dog it was sacrificed after the funeral. The dog would then guide its owner’s soul
through the nine levels of the underworld.
Image 11. Commoner figurine
Aztec, 1250–1521
Basalt
Photo © Colección Fundación Televisa
The short hair on this figurine indicates their status as they were not allowed the flowing tresses of the nobility. Their
clothing was simple, practical and coarse, and made from fibres of the maguey plant. If caught wearing cotton cloth
reserved for nobles, they could be executed. Men wore loincloths and capes; women tunics and skirts. Children ran
around naked until they were 3 and then wore only tunics.
Image 12. Duality vessel
Matlatzinca, 1250–1521
Fired clay, pigment
On loan from Museo Arqueológico del Estado – Teotenango ‘Dr Román Piña Chan’
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
This vessel expresses duality – a key idea in Aztec thought. The carved warrior is healthy and sick, alive and dead. His
mutilated nose hints that he might represent human sacrifice.
Image 13. Blue vessel depicting Tláloc (God of Rain) 1440–69
Aztec, fired clay, pigment
On loan from Museo del Templo Mayor
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
Life-giving rains and gardens overflowing with crops – these were the fruits of Tláloc, god of rain. The mighty Tláloc is
resplendent here in watery blue. His wide eyes also stare out from the resin burner once carried by priests as they
made their sacred pleas for rain, and from the vessels that stored Tláloc’s precious water and produce. Although Tláloc
brought life, he required the sacrifice of humans, including children to sustain him. Their falling tears ensured plentiful
rains.
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Image 14. Pot depicting Tezcatlipoca (God of Destiny and War) 1250–1521
Cholula, fired clay, pigment
On loan from Fundación Televisa
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
This pot is a rare surviving representation of Tezcatlipoca, god of destiny and war. For the Aztecs, who believed in a
symmetrical universe, Tezcatlipoca occupied the north point on the compass. Other gods controlled the other points.
Tezcatlipoca had the power to provide or withhold life and death. On this pot his emaciated appearance refers to the
young people who were sacrificed to him. From sacrifice came new life.
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to 72 dpi, 475 pixels longest side 4) Images only to be used in conjunction with the Aztecs Exhibition
Image 15. Polychrome pot
Mixtec, about 1500
Fired clay, pigment
On loan from Fundación Televisa
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
Image 16. Calendar Stone
Aztec, about 1500
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
This large stone disc was excavated in the main square of Mexico City in 1790. Most scholars believe the face at the
centre to be that of Tonatiuh, a sun god.
Image 17. Suit of armour, 1500s
Spanish iron
On loan from Museo Nacional de Historia Castillo de Chapultepec
Photo by Gliserio Castañeda García © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
Aztec spears and darts failed to penetrate the iron armour of the invaders. The Spanish soldiers were outnumbered by
the locals but stronger in arms. Most were armoured from head to toe. They could cut down dozens of Aztecs and
remain unscathed. This inscribed breastplate belonged to Pedro de Alvarado, Cortés’ right-hand man. Cortés left
Alvarado in charge at Tenochtitlán while he dealt with a rival Spanish commander. In May 1520, Alvarado massacred
many leading Aztec nobles in the Great Temple. This prompted a local rebellion that led to all-out war between the
Aztecs and the newcomers.
Image 18. Horse’s Armour
Spanish, 1500s
Wrought iron
On loan from Museo Nacional de Historia Castillo de Chapultepec
Photo by Jorge Vértiz © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
The Aztecs had never seen horses before and were understandably terrified of them. According to one Spanish
missionary, they saw these armoured beasts as ‘deer that bore men on their backs … Clad with iron and bells, snorting,
bellowing and exuding oceans of sweat, they were like roaring creatures.’ Horses gave the invaders a military
advantage. They could cover vast territory at speed and lug heavy loads, including carts carrying cannons and supplies.
After the conquest, they helped the Spanish rapidly establish trade networks and carried the new culture far and wide.
Image 19. Xochipilli pectoral
Mixtec. Gold. 1250 – 1521
On loan from Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)
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Image 20. Gold ring with the figure of a descending eagle
Mixtec, 1325–1521
On loan from Museo de las Culturas de Oaxaca
Photo by Michel Zabe © The Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH)