﻿118 
  

  

  THR 
  NATTONAT, 
  GEOGRAPHIC 
  MAGAZINE 
  

  

  DEDICATION 
  OE 
  THE 
  GREAT 
  TEMPLE 
  OF* 
  

  

  HUITZIUPOCHTLI, 
  THE 
  AZTEC 
  GOD 
  

  

  OE 
  WAR, 
  AT 
  TENOCHTITEAN, 
  

  

  IN 
  THE 
  YEAR 
  5 
  EUNT 
  

  

  (1484 
  A. 
  D.) 
  

  

  The 
  year 
  5 
  Flint 
  is 
  represented 
  in 
  the 
  square 
  

   above 
  by 
  the 
  flint 
  with 
  the 
  five 
  dots 
  on 
  its 
  

   right. 
  Below 
  is 
  the 
  great 
  temple 
  of 
  the 
  War 
  

   God, 
  its 
  stairway 
  red 
  with 
  the 
  blood 
  of 
  the 
  

   sacrificial 
  victims. 
  On 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  pyramid 
  is 
  

   the 
  hieroglyph 
  for 
  Tenochtitlan, 
  the 
  ancient 
  

   name 
  of 
  Mexico 
  City, 
  expressed 
  by 
  a 
  stone 
  

   with 
  a 
  cactus 
  growing 
  out 
  of 
  it. 
  On 
  the 
  right 
  

   is 
  a 
  priest 
  in 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  despatching 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  

   human 
  victims. 
  This 
  event 
  took 
  place 
  in 
  the 
  

   second 
  year 
  of 
  the 
  reign 
  of 
  Tizoc, 
  the 
  seventh 
  

   Aztec 
  ruler, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  the 
  

   first 
  occasion 
  when 
  human 
  sacrifice 
  was 
  prac- 
  

   ticed 
  by 
  the 
  Aztec, 
  previously 
  to 
  this 
  the 
  sacri- 
  

   fices 
  having 
  been 
  of 
  animals 
  and 
  birds. 
  

  

  The 
  second 
  and 
  third 
  figures 
  on 
  page 
  

   117 
  represent 
  the 
  conquest 
  of 
  the 
  town 
  of 
  

   Tehuantepec 
  by 
  the 
  Aztec 
  ruler 
  Ahuitzotl 
  

   shortly 
  before 
  his 
  death, 
  in 
  1502. 
  In 
  the 
  

   square 
  at 
  the 
  left 
  hand 
  is 
  the 
  year 
  10 
  

   Rabbit, 
  which 
  corresponded, 
  as 
  explained 
  

   previously, 
  to 
  the 
  year 
  1502. 
  Next 
  Ahuit- 
  

   zotl 
  is 
  portrayed 
  with 
  the 
  three 
  emblems 
  

   of 
  Aztec 
  royalty 
  — 
  the 
  crown, 
  the 
  dais, 
  

   and 
  the 
  speech-scroll. 
  His 
  name 
  glyph, 
  

   "The 
  Water-animal," 
  appears 
  above, 
  at- 
  

   tached 
  to 
  his 
  head 
  by 
  a 
  cord. 
  

  

  The 
  shield 
  with 
  the 
  javelins 
  behind 
  it 
  

   is 
  the 
  Aztec 
  hieroglyph 
  for 
  war 
  (at 
  the 
  

   right, 
  above), 
  and 
  the 
  temple 
  in 
  flames 
  

   (at 
  the 
  right, 
  below, 
  note 
  the 
  smoke 
  

   curls) 
  denotes 
  conquest. 
  

  

  The 
  name 
  of 
  the 
  town 
  conquered 
  ap- 
  

   pears 
  to 
  the 
  left 
  of 
  the 
  burning 
  temple; 
  

   it 
  is 
  the 
  head 
  of 
  a 
  man-eating 
  cat, 
  possi- 
  

   bly 
  the 
  jaguar, 
  surmounting 
  a 
  hill: 
  tcc- 
  

   uani, 
  a 
  "man-eating 
  cat," 
  and 
  tepee, 
  "hill 
  

  

  or 
  town." 
  This 
  picture, 
  therefore, 
  is 
  to 
  

   be 
  interpreted 
  as 
  recording 
  the 
  conquest 
  

   of 
  the 
  town 
  of 
  Tehuantepec, 
  in 
  southern 
  

   Mexico, 
  on 
  the 
  isthmus 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  name, 
  

   by 
  the 
  ruler 
  Ahuitzotl 
  in 
  1502. 
  

  

  THE 
  RECORD 
  OE 
  A 
  TEMPLES 
  DEDICATION 
  

  

  The 
  picture 
  on 
  this 
  page 
  portrays 
  the 
  

   dedication 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  temple 
  of 
  Huit- 
  

   zilipochtli, 
  the 
  Aztec 
  God 
  of 
  War, 
  at 
  

   Tenochtitlan, 
  in 
  1484, 
  at 
  which 
  human 
  

   sacrifice 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  practiced 
  

   for 
  the 
  first 
  time. 
  In 
  the 
  square 
  above 
  is 
  

   a 
  piece 
  of 
  flint 
  and 
  five 
  dots, 
  representing 
  

   the 
  year 
  5 
  Tecpatl, 
  or 
  5 
  Flint, 
  correspond- 
  

   ing 
  to 
  1484 
  A. 
  D. 
  To 
  this 
  is 
  attached, 
  on 
  

   the 
  right, 
  the 
  figure 
  of 
  a 
  priest 
  who 
  has 
  

   just 
  sacrificed 
  a 
  human 
  victim, 
  the 
  latter 
  

   pictured 
  as 
  dying 
  on 
  the 
  ground, 
  welter- 
  

   ing 
  in 
  his 
  own 
  blood. 
  

  

  To 
  the 
  left 
  is 
  the 
  great 
  temple 
  of 
  the 
  

   War 
  God, 
  the 
  stairway 
  being 
  shown 
  as 
  

   plentifully 
  besprinkled 
  with 
  the 
  gore 
  of 
  

   the 
  hecatomb 
  of 
  victims. 
  On 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  

   pyramid 
  is 
  a 
  stone 
  from 
  which 
  grows 
  a 
  

   cactus, 
  this 
  combination 
  being 
  the 
  hiero- 
  

   glyph 
  for 
  Tenochtitlan. 
  

  

  HOW 
  THE 
  AZTEC 
  RECORDED 
  AN 
  ECLTPSE 
  

  

  Figure 
  a 
  on 
  page 
  119 
  shows 
  an 
  eclipse 
  

   of 
  the 
  sun 
  which 
  was 
  visible 
  in 
  the 
  Val- 
  

   ley 
  of 
  Mexico 
  in 
  15 
  10. 
  Again 
  the 
  year 
  

   is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  rabbit's 
  head 
  and 
  the 
  five 
  

   dots 
  in 
  the 
  square 
  above 
  — 
  i. 
  e., 
  5 
  Tochtli, 
  

   or 
  5 
  Rabbit 
  (1510), 
  from 
  which 
  hangs 
  

   the 
  sun's 
  disk 
  with 
  a 
  sector 
  bitten 
  out 
  of 
  

   it, 
  the 
  Aztec 
  hieroglyph 
  denoting 
  an 
  

   eclipse. 
  

  

  Figure 
  b 
  on 
  page 
  119 
  represents 
  a 
  

   comet 
  which 
  swept 
  over 
  Mexico 
  in 
  1489. 
  

   Above, 
  the 
  year 
  10 
  Calli, 
  or 
  10 
  House, 
  is 
  

   recorded, 
  which 
  corresponded 
  with 
  the 
  

   year 
  1489 
  of 
  the 
  Christian 
  era. 
  Attached 
  

   to 
  the 
  year 
  is 
  the 
  hieroglyph 
  for 
  a 
  comet, 
  

   happily 
  represented 
  by 
  the 
  Aztec 
  as 
  a 
  

   large 
  serpent 
  stretching 
  across 
  the 
  

   heavens. 
  

  

  Montezuma 
  regarded 
  this 
  comet 
  as 
  an 
  

   evil 
  omen, 
  presaging 
  the 
  downfall 
  of 
  him- 
  

   self 
  and 
  his 
  race; 
  so 
  that 
  three 
  decades 
  

   later, 
  when 
  Cortez 
  landed 
  in 
  Mexico, 
  the 
  

   superstitious 
  Indian 
  ruler 
  thought 
  that 
  

   the 
  fair-skinned 
  Spaniards 
  were 
  sons 
  of 
  

   the 
  white-skinned, 
  golden-haired 
  Aztec 
  

   god, 
  Quetzalcoatl, 
  and 
  pursued 
  such 
  a 
  

   vacillatory 
  policy 
  toward 
  the 
  invaders 
  

  

  