Aztecs
Aztec project social studies
Location
The capital city-state of the Aztec tribe is called Tenochtitlan, which is now modern day Mexico city.
It was built along a series of islets in the Lake Texcoco area.
Government
The Aztec empire is made up of many city-states know as Altepetl.
Every Altepetl was ruled by a supreme leader known as a "tlatoan".
The tlatoan of the capital city state Tenochtitlan was the emperor of the entire Aztec empire.
Aztec Religion
The religion of the Aztecs is mesoamerican. The religion had elements of human sacrifice.
Human sacrifice was a part of a large number of religious festivals which were held to a pattern of the Aztec calendar.
Economy
The Aztecs traded anything and everything. They mostly traded for mostly food and livestock. They didn't use money like today, they traded for everything such as food, animals, seeds to grow crops, etc.
Technology and Contributions
- They didn't have iron or bronze to make tools.
- They had no metal tools. Many tools were made of obsidian and chert.
Decline of the Civilization
Between the 1517 and 1519 the Aztec city-state Tenochtitlan had many earthquakes, and Lake Texcoco flooded the city.
Ahuitzol ruled from 1486-1502, he was followed by Montezuma II who ruled until the spanish took over in 1521.
Sites to see
- pyramids
- richly decorated temples and palaces
- ritual ball courts
- gruesome sacrificing sites