Aztec civilization

The Aztecs were originally wandering, hunting and farming people who arrived on the shores of Lake Texoco in the valley of Mexico in about AD1300. Aztec civilization flourished during the period failing under the 12th-15th centuries. This civilization flourished in the present region of Mexico.

The empire of Aztec civilization was spread in a vast area of 20,000 square kilometers. It was the most indigenous civilization before the Spanish colonized Mexico. The empire covered a huge area which stretched from the Pacific coasts of the Gulf of Mexico and from Central Mexico to the land that is Guatemala today.

The Aztecs built their capital Tenochtitlan into wonderful city. The city had been grown on an island. It extended into the lake Texoco by means of floating gardens and by pushing piles into the shallow water of the lake. A grid system of canals and streets was constructed around pyramids, temples and palaces.

Aztec warrior

The Aztecs are noted for the architecture, jewellery, sculpture and textiles, the styles of which have continued to be of influence until the present day.

The Aztecs did not write using an alphabet. The priests and scribes wrote using a form of little pictures called ‘glyphs’. Books were written on deer skin or the bark of the wild fig tree. Both sides of the skin or bark were written on, then fold like a map.

The Aztecs used many musical instruments, because music played a large part in their religious festivals and services. The main instruments played were the flute, drums and rattles. The Aztec Empire possessed great power for about 100 years, until most of the civilization was destroyed by the Spanish in the early 1500s.  
Aztec civilization