28 May 2025 / 8 Alligator
Artefacts of the Aztecs/ancient Mesoamericans
Here are some carefully researched and richly illustrated story features on individual artefacts that were central to Aztec and wider Mesoamerican life - more on their way...!
PLUS: mini-features on intriguing artefacts (mostly in museums) we think you may find interesting... AND: check out our artefact study pages, each linked to a downloadable activity sheet (see menu, right).
Copper axes were given by elders to school leaders‘upon a youth’s taking leave to marry’...
Tilmatli, all-purpose male garmentworn by all social classes...
The ritual of incensing was notrestricted to Aztec temples...
Watch a short video presenting well-knownAztec objects in their original colours...
Watch a short video clip -close-up view of a Tlaloc figure, Berlin Museum
Ancient Huichol ojo de dios? No, thisis a traditional Scottish good luck charm...!
The rattle staff had strong associationswith procreation, fertility and rain...
Every Aztec warrior wore padded armour, likea bullet-proof vest...
Double-headed serpent orterrifying turquoise caterpillar?
How the Olmec jaguar maskmay have evolved into the Mexica rain god pot...
The amazing story of the discoveryof an Aztec obsidian mirror in Taiwan...
Since the 14th century the Mexicaassociated turquoise with Toltec identity...
John Dee is unlikely to have appreciatedthe powers of the BM’s black obsidian mirror...
Lighting a new fire with sticks was a fundamentalsymbol of fertilisation, reproduction and creation...
Could Aztec rattle figurines havehelped alleviate pain in pregnancy?
Amongst the 13,000 objects in Ofrenda 126were the remains of 1,688 individual creatures
Bottle gourds makeperfect water bottles!
How authentic is the popular ‘Aztec/Maya Circle of Friends’ figure?
We survey our Panel of Experts ontheir preferred ‘Desert Island Artefact’...
Nahua walking sticks of today are descendedfrom ancient Mesoamerican merchants’ staffs
A stunning infographic shows exactly where keyMexica artefacts have been found in Mexico City
Large sea shells have been luxury objectsfor over 3,000 years in Mesoamerica
The broom was a weapon - ‘the housewife’sdefense against invading dirt and disorder’
Feathers from ‘pretty much every bird’were used by the Aztecs and the Maya
‘Moctezuma’s Headdress’ - a 2018 update:Report on a one-day symposium in London
The chimalli: one of the most emblematicweapons in the history of Mesoamerica
The story behind the famous monkeyshaped obsidian jar from Texcoco...
Under the day sign One DeathAztec slaves were released from their collars
A Mexican community rediscovers its cultural heritage in education,history, archaeology and campaigning...
Coatlicue - the epitomeof Mexica/Aztec art...
Could this be the eighth known pieceof pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican featherwork?
Guess how many feathers wentinto making this famous Aztec shield?
Europe has many Mesoamerican objectsthat were victims of ‘mistaken identity’...
‘The primary association of a chairis with power....’
The Templo Mayor Museum has a rare exampleof a Mexica priest’s waistcoat...
The Dumbarton Oaks ‘Aztec’ Birthing Figureis striking, powerful, and entirely unparalleled
A stone Aztec jaguar head still lurksjust 7 blocks from the Zócalo...
You will never guess what some childrenthink a molinillo is for...!
Aztec pine torches gave plenty ofrich aroma as well as light!
See and Be Seen - the meaning of‘smoking’ obsidian mirrors
An Aztec thief just had to ‘lift the lid’of the family treasure chest
The ‘personified knives’ from Ofrenda 125of the sacred precinct of Tenochtitlan
The V&A Museum has, stored away, a mysterious‘monster’ metate which we’ve been allowed to see
In ancient Mexico the oldest clay stampswere hand modelled...
The famous atlatl dart-throwerwas a truly ancient hunting weapon
Every Mexica family owned something ceramic - what a lotta pottery!
The best stone sauce bowlstake generations to ‘season’
Rulers were said to carrya heavy LOAD of responsibility...
The reed mat ‘petate’ -- you could bet your life on it...
Symbol of a good Aztec citizen?The upright digging stick
Getting to the hearth of the matter- at the very centre of Aztec life
Did the ancient Mexicans inventhigh-chairs for meal times?
We share in schools the Aztecs’ joy of carrying the most precious artefact of all - a young baby...
Maquahuitl- the Aztecs’ Broadsword
The Aztec Uictliwas in some contexts a sacred instrument
Strictly ‘tzictli’ - sticky chicle!Nip up a gum tree and discover the original Aztec recipe...
An obsidian ‘microphone’- basic kit for Aztec DJs!
¡Viva el Chicozapote!Up the Chewing Gum Tree!
As well as chewing chicle latexancient peoples used it to seal and stick
ChimalliAztec shields - status symbols par excellence
TeponaztliThe ‘Queen’ of Aztec sacred drums ...
MetateOne of the most ancient of Aztec artefacts
Sun moonVenus -
U-tube - a great source of music......for over 800 years!
Did these figures representmulti-ethnic ancient Mexico?
Did the ancient Mexicansplay marbles, or jacks?
Artefact in the Spotlight
Figure of an old man and boy, Huaxtec, 900-1450 CE, limestone, height 34 cms., British Museum.
The wrinkled features and stooping posture of this old man suggest that he represents the aged Huaxtec thunder god ‘Mam’. He appears to be engaged in the act of presenting a young boy, perhaps prior to his induction into a peer group. Other versions of the old man show him holding a serpent staff or dibble stick used to penetrate the earth so that it can receive new seed. Similar sculptures are still used today as the focus of ceremonial life in remote rural villages. At planting time they are bedecked with greenery and flowers and people entreat them to ensure the fertility of their fields and a bountiful harvest.
Quote from Ancient Mexico in the British Museum by Colin McEwan, British Museum Press 1994, p.36.
Photo by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore.
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More Aztec Artefacts
- WelcomeTepoztli (axe)Tilmatli (cape or cloak)Tlemaitl (incense ladle)Video: Aztec art in original colourTlaloc figure, Berlin MuseumMexican/Scottish good luck charmsChicahuaztli (rattle staff)Ichcahuipilli (quilted armour)Rethinking the Double-Headed Serpent at the British MuseumFrom Olmec jaguar into Mexica rain godAztec obsidian mirror in TaiwanXiuhuitzolli (royal diadem)British Museum obsidian mirrorMamalhuaztli (fire drill)Aztec rattle figurinesMarine objects in Ofrenda 126 at the Templo MayorBottle gourd‘Circle of Friends’ figure‘Desert Island Artefacts’Topilli (staff)Important Mexica artefactsSea shell or conch‘The Power of Brooms’Feathers in Aztec and Maya headdresses‘Moctezuma’s Headdress’ - updateChimalli or shield: defensive weapon par excellenceObsidian monkey jarSlave’s collarMexico community educationCoatlicue‘Headdress of Cuauhtémoc’Featherwork shieldGenuine or fake?ThroneXicolli‘Birthing Figure’Stone jaguar’s headChocolate whiskPine torchSee and Be Seen: (‘Smoking’) MirrorsStudy the... FAMILY CHESTPersonified knivesAncient metate at the V&AClay stampsAtlatlAztec potteryMolcajeteCarrying frameStudy the... PETATEStudy the... DIGGING STICKStudy the... HEARTHAztec high-chair?Baby basketMaquahuitlUictliTzictli (part 1)Aztec microphone?Tzictli (part 2)The Chewing Gum TreeChewing Gum used for other PurposesChimalliTeponaztliMetateA family of deities?‘U’-tube‘Host’ figurinesPre-Hispanic marbles, or jacks?