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Many of the artifacts are little short of spectacular: exquisitely carved horned gods, plumed serpents, giant sea shells and grotesquely decorated skulls. Not only do they show the skill, imagination and intellect of their Indian craftsmen, but, more important, they offer a revealing perspective on Aztec life. For all their obsession with killing and conquest, the Aztecs (a name given them by 19th century writers from the word Aztlan, their mythic home in the north) were capable of building aqueducts to bring fresh water to the capital, were skilled agriculturalists, wrote lyrical poetry, admired and preserved the artistry of earlier...

Author: /time Magazine | Title: Science: Poetry, Serpents and Sacrifice | 8/16/1982 | See Source »

Though Cortés and other Spaniards - in particular, priest scholars - sent home vivid, sometimes exaggerated descriptions and drawings of the Great Temple, it soon became little more than a fading memory. Over the ruins of the Aztec capital, modern Mexico City began to grow. Above the sacred precincts rose such major buildings as the National Cathedral, the National Palace and the Supreme Court of Justice. Except for an occasional reminder of its presence with the discovery of a stray Aztec artifact, the Great Temple was virtually forgotten. Even its precise location was not known...

Author: /time Magazine | Title: Science: Poetry, Serpents and Sacrifice | 8/16/1982 | See Source »

...door on the Aztec past was opened quite accidentally before dawn on Feb. 21, 1978. While workers for the Mexico City Light and Power Co. were digging a hole heart the intersection of Argentina and Guatemala streets, they discovered an oval stone eleven feet in diameter, covered with carvings. Archaeologists quickly identified the relief as a representation of an important Aztec myth. The central image on the stone was the dismembered torso of Huitzilopochtli's evil sister, Coyolxauhqui. According to legend, she had plotted with her many brothers to kill their mother just as she was about to give...

Author: /time Magazine | Title: Science: Poetry, Serpents and Sacrifice | 8/16/1982 | See Source »

...stone, in almost perfect condition, created a sensation. A rumor spread through Mexico City that the workers had found the long-lost treasure of Moctezuma II, the ill-fated Aztec Emperor who was imprisoned by Cortées. But the find turned out to be even more important. Spurred by concerned archaeologists, the Mexican government authorized a systematic excavation of the old temple. During 4½ years of methodical work under the direction of Archaeologist Eduardo Matos Moctezuma (no kin), the diggers uncovered all four of the Great Temple's sides, discovering that it was a far more complex...

Author: /time Magazine | Title: Science: Poetry, Serpents and Sacrifice | 8/16/1982 | See Source »

...uncovering of this major Aztec monument in the very center of their capital has stirred a wave of national pride among Mexicans. During the excavation Archaeologist Matos Moctezuma appeared so often on television he became something of a national celebrity. Colleagues jokingly took to calling the regally bearded scholar Moctezuma III. The excavation itself is scheduled to be opened to tourists later this year...

Author: /time Magazine | Title: Science: Poetry, Serpents and Sacrifice | 8/16/1982 | See Source »

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