The so-called pre-Columbian civilizations
are those that developed in Central and South America prior to the arrival
of Christopher Columbus in 1492. The best known
among them are the Inca, Aztecs, and Maya civilizations. However,
not much is left of the Aztec cities since the capital Tenochtitlan
was destroyed by the conquistadors and covered
by the Colonial Center of Mexico City. The site of Teotihuacan,
50 kilometers from Mexico, is the last remaining vestige
excluding the Codex. The research on the civilization
is thus based on the Codex. Books painted by the Aztecs themselves,
and the writings of the conquistadors, like Hermán Cortés and chroniclers
from the 16th and 17th century. Most of them were made
before the late 16th century. They depict objects,
characters, and shapes in line with the very specific conventions
they put concepts into imagery. Here, for example, the billow emanating
from a character's mouth symbolizes speech. What we know about the Aztecs
is that they were first nomads. They settled in the Mexico Valley
in the early 16th century. From their capital, they erected an empire
conquering neighboring lands and forming alliances
with other city-states. Aztec civilization was a latecomer
on the pre-Columbian scene, and its own culture
was linked to older traditions. The Aztecs arrived
on the high central plateau in the 13th century
or at the beginning of the 14th according to the translations of the text. In fact, it is a group of migrants who probably came from the
northwesterner confines of West America. Through their war-like qualities, and a system of alliances
mostly but not only matrimonial they came to establish themselves
as the head of all the other cities and take power. This is a small group of migrants
who arrive from the north and pass the capital city of Tula,
the Toltec capital. They stay there for a certain time. This trip to Tula is extremely important because the Aztecs are able to obtain
a form of Mesoamerican legitimacy. Like the Teotihuacan, Aztecs themselves
claim to be the heirs of Teotihuacan. They arrived from the north of the Basin and will enter a valley
where there are many lakes. This is a region that is very favorable
for agriculture and for human settlement. It has been highly populated
for a long time. They try to find a place to settle. They will clash
with the cities on the banks. Some of these cities
will hire them as mercenaries to take advantage
of their warlike qualities. That quickly turns bad since the Aztecs
are known for their brutality. This is what the texts say, and for practicing
outrageous human sacrifices. For these reasons, they are chased
from all the cities on the banks and they are forced
to seek refuge on a tiny island located in the center of Lake Texcoco. This is where they will discover a sign
sent to them by their main deity, Huitzilopochtli, God of the sun and war. This sign is an eagle perched
on a cactus in the middle of devouring, according to the traditions,
a prickly pear, the fruit of the cactus, which is a symbolic representation
of the human heart. The Spanish tell us that it is a serpent,
which would be the equivalent of evil in Western thought. They decide that it is here that the gods
tell them to establish their temple. The Aztecs believe
they were created by the winged snake God called Quetzalcoatl, who descended
into the underworld of the dead and sprayed the bones
of the ancestors with his own blood to bring them back to life. It is known for excavations
that the Island was in evidence before the arrival of the Aztecs. Certainly not very popular, but the Aztecs did not move
into a completely unpopulated area. The city, Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital
was created in the middle of the lake. This will cause challenges
for urban planning in terms of control of the level of the lake's waters, because it is a region
where it rains a lot in the rainy season. On the other hand,
the dry season is very long, with the due variation of life
which they will have to manage. The Aztecs will develop
highly complex systems of locks and aqueducts
to bring drinking water to the island and construct a lakeside city,
which at the moment of the conquest will amaze the Spaniards
with its beauty, its cleanliness, and the organization of its neighborhood. The Aztecs used writing, knew how to make paper
and practiced astronomy. Trade was very developed
throughout the empire and the capital held huge markets. At first, they control very little. Indeed, they are surrounded by enemies. As soon as they create their dynasty, they request that one of the cities
on the banks to give them a sovereign. This is a way for them
to gain a kind of legitimacy in the basin of Mexico. After that,
both by war, especially with the Totonac, but also through a system of alliances,
as the Texcoco, they will gradually succeed
in establishing alliances. There was a major turning point in 1428,
with the creation of a triple alliance. A mutual aid agreement
between the City of Texcoco, the City of Tenochtitlan,
and a City of Tiacopan on the western side
of the basin of Mexico. This military treaty signed
between these three cities, but allow the expansion of the empire
outside of the basin of Mexico. The Aztecs will quickly take the lead
of this triple alliance, practically to the point
of dominating the other cities. The purpose of the Aztec expansion
is mainly economic, as it will allow
the population of Tenochtitlan to benefit from a certain prosperity. The Aztecs will develop
their own political entity. From the founding to the beginning
of the expansion in control of the basin of Mexico. They're forced to rely on other allies up to the formation of the Aztec empire
that the Spanish will encounter. The Aztecs claim a double origin,
which you find elsewhere in the text. The Huntawoi is in the north and the sedentary farmers
in the Basin of Mexico. This represents
the two economic bases of the empire, the two great social categories,
the producers, and the predators. They're the warriors
who deal with the tribes. Gradually, the Aztecs will take control
of the entire south of the Basin and all the areas of raised fields or Chinampas
which are particularly richer culturally. Thus the Aztecs practice
a political expansion which is not based solely
on religious or military criteria, but economically. From 1420 or 1430, the Aztec expansion
leaves the Basin of Mexico and does so by a policy. It seems highly calculated. The Aztecs take control
of the bordering regions little by little and the conquests accumulate progressively
until the arrival of the Spaniards. That is to say that the Aztec policy
of expansion truly aimed to control an entire collection of territories
in order to acquire riches like cotton, cocoa, marine resources, etc. The expansion
is increasingly led by Mexico City. That is to say, Tenochtitlan, the two other allies
taking a progressively secondary place. We are facing an expanding empire
with territories under its control. At first, we talked about an Aztec empire,
but then we took a step back saying that it was a more
or less uncertain expansion, and to speak of an empire
was a little audacious. The latest works seem to show
that there's a policy of expansion that is quite organized
and structured and meets specific goals. The capital, Tenochtitlan,
was one of the biggest cities in the world with more than 200,000 people. Progressively, the city-state
became the most powerful on the central plateau of Mexico. It first dominated the Mexico Valley,
then progressively extended its influence from the Gulf of Mexico
to the Pacific Ocean Coast. The Aztecs, to affirm the superiority
into better integrating themselves, assimilated
preexisting cultures with their own. They claim
to be the descendants of the Toltec. In the legends, the Toltec are said
to be at the origin of all civilizations. They are called the Master Builders. The later Aztec civilization
thus thought of the Toltec as their predecessors, on both an intellectual
and cultural level. Immediately before the Aztecs
there were the Toltecs. We know today
that it is a population that developed between 950 and 1,250 at least,
and that Tula is their capital. Historical tradition makes it
so that later populations of the Basin of Mexico
always refer to the Toltecs as the great founders. At the moment, when the Aztecs
take power on the Basin of Mexico, at the beginning of the 15th century, there was only 100 years
before the arrival of the Spaniards. During this period,
an entire tradition is put into place which values the ancient cities
in which the Aztecs would take their place and their continuity. At the same time, their community
clearly mark their differences and just say
that they came from somewhere else. The Aztecs took over
the abandoned Toltec city of Teotihuacan. This site is the only physical trace
that remains of the Aztec and was not even built by them. Only Tenochtitlan, the capital,
was their work, but it disappeared
under the foundations of Mexico City. At Teotihuacan, which is the most famous
pre-Columbian city-state, it is clear that the word Toltec
refers to master builders. When the Aztecs arrived here,
they saw it too. Its ruins are located about 50 kilometers
northeast of Mexico City. The city reached its peak glory
between 150 and 450 A.D. It then had a population of over 150,000. Teotihuacan civilization
was very close to the Mayan civilization and strongly influenced the populations
that later appeared in Mexico, like the Aztec. Teotihuacan at the moment
when the city emerges is already the fruit of a long history
and people have settled. They've become great farmers with an economy
based on the growth of corn in particular. Little by little,
they will give birth to this city, which in the space of one or two centuries
will become this great metropolis, the greatest political
and economic power in all of Mexico. The city was designed
around a central access, the avenue of the dead. On either side of the avenue stand
pyramids and temples devoted to the gods. It is divided into four quadrants. It is the symbolic representation
of the world on a horizontal plane. Note the absence
of all military structures and fortifications within the city. Teotihuacan
was abandoned in the seventh century, perhaps following a revolt
of the people against the leading class. We are well aware that this city
has lasted for seven centuries and has known many changes. Do not think
that it is the moment frozen in time. There are monuments that are built,
that are expanded and others that are destroyed. The cities moved, operated,
and developed in an extraordinary way. What remains a great mystery
for the archaeologists is the way in which it collapses,
disappearing completely during the seventh century
until scientists uncovered it in our days. What is striking
about the city of Teotihuacan is the urban plan,
with a grid layer, built on a north, south and east, west access. It is structured around major monuments, including the pyramid of the moon
and the pyramid of the sun. It shows a very strong political power capable of gathering
more than 300,000 inhabitants in one place in a pre-industrial economy
which is incredible. Above all,
there must have been a coercive power, certainly very strong, so this urban plan
remains strict to this point. We are facing a flourishing city
which truly dominates Mesoamerica in the third and fourth centuries. From the sixth
and seventh centuries onwards, the city will collapse,
disappear, and be abandoned. Many causes have been suspected
for the decline and disappearance of such a power. Currently, archaeologists attribute it
to climate change, saying that a long drought possibly
destabilized the agricultural economy of the region
and that the agricultural region of Teotihuacan
could no longer continue like his. We talked about foreign policy
but this is something else. In fact, at the end of Teotihuacan, we see a certain number
of buildings that are burned down. However, even here, strictly speaking,
we have no trace of any civilization that was powerful
enough to destroy Teotihuacan. We also talk about internal problems. One could imagine elites or other groups
clashing in the interior of the city itself to the point
of causing its implosion. In the end, it is certainly a combination
of all these elements. Economic problems linked to the drought,
internal political problems, and possibly some foreign aggressions that make it so that effectively
at a given moment, the city disappears. This is how the Aztecs
will discover this city at the time when they arrived
in the basin of Mexico. They will discover it in ruins. Like many other political stories
from around the world, they will finish by writing
their own history and mythology on top of the previous site. They will give birth to their God
at Teotihuacan which is one of the subtlest ways
on the religious and economic level to join these new peoples
with an already existing territory. We see fascinating things. The Aztecs themselves
could act like archaeologists as they will unearth
certain objects in Teotihuacan, including a very blue mask characteristic
of the Toltec civilization. They will recover the Teotihuacan, bring it to the current location
of Mexico City, their own capital, and hide it away in one
of their own pyramids, like a relic of some sort. Coming from Tenochtitlan, their capital,
on the other side of the lake, the Aztec found enough
in the forgotten city to satisfy their ambitions. What must have increased on the land
is the existence of these Great Pyramids that are turned back into hills,
which are completely isolated in the middle of a plane
will attract your attention. They knew perfectly well
that there were ancient pyramids and temples. It was very close to their home,
something like 40 kilometers away. It's completely logical
that the Aztecs set a certain number of their origin myths
and Teotihuacan itself. It's from Teotihuacan
that the Aztecs thought the sun and the moon
appeared in our world. The Aztecs were the first
to conduct excavations in Teotihuacan to find offerings for the Templo Mayor
in Mexico City, for example, because a certain number of the objects
found are of the Teotihuacan style and were probably recovered
from the site via excavations or looting. In any case, the Aztecs were eager
to recover these elements which had a strong symbolic connotation
for them in order to join in the tradition of the inhabitants of the region. The Aztec thus took over the site,
its buildings and gods, as well as all the techniques
used by their predecessors and integrated them into their own culture
to make the new city evolve and develop. The pyramid is the support for a temple. That is to say, the summit
of this which is flatter and less slender than the Egyptian pyramids,
there lies a temple where a number of rituals are practiced
including some human sacrifices. The symbolism of the pyramid
is a form of representation of mountains. The churches
around the site of Teotihuacan are considered vital places,
sources of water, and are particularly honored
by the ancient Mexicans. The city stretched out
over 30 square kilometers. It started being built
in the early pre-classic period around the year 300 B.C. The Pyramid of the Sun
was completed in 150. To the north, the avenue of the dead
leads to the pyramid of the moon, 46 meters high behind
which rises an ancient volcano. There are two pyramids,
that of the moon and the sun. Names that were given
by the artists of the 19th century. They were built
during the very first years of our era. The recent excavations,
conducted at the Pyramid of the Moon in the north of the site,
reveal a complex place. We could see from tunnels dug
in this that was built in seven stages. In fact,
there were seven successive pyramids. Each one a little larger than the last
in the style of a Russian doll. Building upon the first small pyramid,
a second was constructed. Then the third, the forth,
up to the seventh, which is the one we can see today. These constructions were spread between the beginning of our era
and the fourth century. Recent excavations are shown
that are on the equation of these new constructions. The second has human and animal sacrifices as a kind of inauguration
of the new buildings. The digs also revealed caches. Pits in which, in one case
more than 15 people were decapitated or buried with their hands
tied behind their backs. Elsewhere, we could find the skeletons
of jaguars, wolves, and raptor,
some of which were buried alive. All these accompanied
by exceptional funeral offerings, obsidian knives, statuettes, and masks, which makes this discovery
an exceptional event for the archaeological world, on the level of understanding these signs
and their practice for human sacrifices. In front of the edifice is the moon Plaza, lined with platforms
that conform to rigorous symmetry. The pyramid was devoted
to the God of storms. The pyramid of the sun
is 65 meters high. The pyramid of the sun
is a pyramid orientated to the west, thus towards the setting sun. On the other side of the pyramid
there is a door that gives access to a long tunnel that goes deep
into the bowels of the pyramid and ends at a chamber designed
like a flower with four petals, with four limbs which is located
exactly below the platform at the summit of the pyramid. It is therefore thought that the pyramid
was built to cover this cavity, which was the original site
of worship in Teotihuacan. Unfortunately,
this space was constantly visited, notably by the Aztecs. We find Aztec ceramics there. The Aztecs themselves probably
practiced rituals there, so we don't know
what occurred there originally. Were there funerals or high-ranking people
in the hierarchy of Teotihuacan? Was there a spring? We don't know. It is a place
has been too upset since ancient times, but it is certainly
quite an important place for the rituals practice
at the beginning of the Teotihuacan, underneath the pyramid of the sun. It is worth mentioning that grottoes
played an important role in the Mesoamerican religion. They symbolize fertility,
the site of man's creation, and also represent access
to the underworld of the dead. At the intersection
of the Avenue of the Dead and the great East-West Road
stands a huge complex that archaeologists call the Citadel. From 150 AD, the Citadel became
the nerve center of the city. It is the point
where the two great avenues that oriented the entire city crossed. It is located in the southeast corner
of the intersection. This is a great set of platforms
that surround an enormous square in the center, in which there is the pyramid
of the feathered serpent, Quetzalcoatl, which itself is bordered to the north
and the south by two sets of palaces. The results of the digs
have not confirmed that they were the homes of people
with major political powers. Gradually, with time, this citadel
and this is why we call it that, was surrounded
by platforms to restrict entry. On these platforms, there are a series
of pyramidal foundations that were certainly topped by temples. Between the pyramidal bases of the top,
they will gradually build walls along with the evolution of the city
until it becomes almost fortified. The complex occupies
the surface of 16 hectares and forms the surrounding wall
400 meters long along the side, giving it the appearance of a citadel,
though it had no defensive role at all. At the back of the Esplanade
stands the temple, a step pyramid
flanked by two residential buildings. The Citadel is a hollow space. It is roughly the same size
as the pyramid of the sun, but it's hollow. It is round on top and a center in which the temple
of the feathered serpent is located. This is where we find the famous frescoes
showing the feathered serpent and the God of thunder,
the God with circular eyes, who the Aztecs would call Tlaloc. These are the most well-known beliefs
of pre-Columbian art. This decoration is specific
to Teotihuacan. The heads of reptiles
jutting out from a winged body alternate with sculptures
that are difficult to define in geometric shapes. This work required considerable means. Each head weighs no less than four tons. In the time of the city's glory,
these sculptures were painted. The Aztec practiced human sacrifice
as well as cannibalism. They sometimes ate their enemies
and they sacrificed victims. The skulls of the victims
were left on display by the hundreds. There was some practice
of human sacrifice. It was definitely something
that was quite exceptional and must have taken place
during great ceremonies and in very specific circumstances. One had all kinds
of other possible sacrifices to avoid resorting to human sacrifice. However, human sacrifice
did exist in this time. It existed before
and it will exist afterward. The sacrifices
constantly required new victims and so the Aztecs left on expeditions
to take prisoners of war. However, victims could also be taken
from the general population with their consent. For it was believed that the sacrificed
would depart to a better world. The text describe the recurrence
of human sacrifices. According to Spanish sources, for the inauguration of a great temple,
there were 80,000 sacrifices. We always consider the number
to be inflated by the Spaniards. That said, archaeology shows us
that human sacrifice was practiced. In particular, we find toes on the floor
with particularly high levels of hemoglobin
and there is no doubt that the floors were regularly watered
with blood and statues as well. Each divinity had its own specific rite. Some victims had their hearts ripped out
for the sun to raise each morning. Children were drowned
for the rains to be abundant. Some were skinned in honor of the god
of renewal in vegetation, and their skins
were then worn by the priests. The Aztec worshipped the sun,
the rain, the moon, and many other gods. Their religion was a mix of polytheism,
Shamanism and animism inherited from the more ancient
civilizations of central Mexico. It was a combination
of the Astro religion of the nomads and the agrarian religion of the sedentary peoples
of central Mexico. The Aztec pantheon
is all the more complex, though the Aztecs
exhibited great liberalism. That is to say
that they adopt the gods of groups that they conquer very easily
and integrate them, which is also a manner
of integrating the groups. The principal treaty deity
of the Aztec group is called Huitzilopochtli,
God of war and the sun. The sun at its zenith. Huitzilopochtli
means the hummingbird of the left. This is a God
who is not represented often in statue. On the other hand,
we have numerous portrayals of other divinities like Tlaloc,
the masculine God of rain. Offering divinities linked to water
and fertility were numerous. Death is also present as in the image
with this depiction of a God through a human skull
representing the God of death. Furthermore, there are portrayals
in different-sized sculptures of the feathered serpent God, or Tlaloc. For example, one can even find them
in tiny figurines made of ceramic or stone. Quetzalcoatl,
the famous feathered serpent god, is this animal
that combines the form of a serpent with a covering of feathers. It is at once both a land animal
and an air animal, which shows the relationship
between the celestial world and the underworld. It is a portrait
prominently in Teotihuacan where can be found in murals that show an animal painted
in the sparkling colors of the quetzal. The tropical bird
that is a symbol of Mesoamerican. We also find it portrayed on monuments, in particular on the pyramid
of the feathered serpent in the heart of the Citadel where several dozen
great feathered serpents are depicted. Notably having the head of a feline
with its fangs and the body of a serpent. Another important god
is the god of rain and storms, whom the Aztecs later called Tlaloc. This god is also portrayed in numerous
places across the city of Teotihuacan. Where one recognizes him by his two large
binocular-like circled eyes. This God
is the giver of life through the water, which is the source of agriculture. This rain god, Tlaloc, is also the god of thunder, hail,
or the god of devastating storms. In some way,
he also has a warlike dimension in a way that honored the ancient Aztecs. In general, Mesoamerican civilizations
had a very advanced vision of astronomy. The movement of the planets,
the sun, and the moon no longer had any mystery
for these civilizations. Their calendar system
was particularly well developed and even gathered
all the workings of society. They were great astronomers. Furthermore, we can see calculations
based on astronomical bearings in the division of the city
and in certain axis that structured it. What is incontestable is the degree
of precision in the calendars. In the movement of the planets
by the Mesoamerican civilizations. Those of Teotihuacan in particular
were quite exceptional and rival the knowledge that one
could have not long ago in the West. The Aztecs had the same character
as the other Mesoamerican people. The same way of counting time
based on two principal calendars, along with a Venetian calendar. The two principal
calendars are the calendar of 365 days and the ritual calendar of 260 days. For a given day,
we have a date on both calendars, which is an extremely precise way
of controlling the flow of time and therefore all ritual events
depending on these calendars. For each month, each day,
there is a deity who is the patron deity for whom one will practice
a certain number of rituals. We have very precise information,
thanks to the Spaniards, especially from the work
done by a Franciscan named Zion Sahagun. He recorded a great deal of aspects
related to the life of the Aztecs in particular,
it's ritual characteristics, but also domestic lives. Social organizations,
and the organization of agriculture. He described the markets, etc. We have an enormous amount of information. However,
what is more difficult for us to perceive is everything
related to religious organizations. The organization of rituals
is very carefully described by Sayagun and brings us essential information
on the celebration calendar, which celebrations
one carries out which month. Writing in Mexico
appeared only in the 12th century AD. It was used to register economic data
and for historical and religious writings. Scribes wrote
on various materials like agave fiber, deerskin, and beaten bark. Thousands of codex
were destroyed by the Spanish at the time of the conquest. The writing of the Aztecs
is not like that of the Mayans. With the Mayans,
there is a syntax, the notion of time. It is true writing. For the Aztecs,
writing is more like points of reference that are both visual and phonetic. Here as well, but which probably serve
to relay the oral tradition. The essential myths,
the historic traditions were preserved, transmitted from generation to generation
in the form of an oral tradition as stories were told before crowds
and certain celebrations. In fact, this writing is a code for the transmission
of that oral tradition. The Aztec empire reached its peak
in the early 16th century under the reign of Moctezuma. He had been an emperor for 17 years, when the conquistador Hernán Cortés
landed on Mexican soil in the spring of 1519. The arrival of the conquistadors
sealed the end of Aztec domination. Cortés first allied himself
with their enemies. The Spanish
and their Native American allies arrived before Tenochtitlan,
the capital, on November eight, 1519. Moctezuma greeted them peacefully
at first. Then doubt and hostility set in and ended
with a massacre of Tenochtitlan population and the death of the Aztec leader. The city was then reduced to ruins
on which Mexico City was built. When Cortés arrived,
he arrives to conquer. He knows of the existence
of the Aztec empire and its richness. His objective is to conquer. We are no longer in the age of discovery. He arrives at the head of a small army. Generally,
we count around 450 men of old, soldiers. Cortés arrives on the coast
around Veracruz, where the Indians we call Totonacs
are settled who are tributaries of the Aztec empire. From the beginning, these people
who pay a tribute to the Empire will see in the arrival of the Spaniards
the possibility of liberating themselves from the yoke of the Aztecs. They will rapidly ally themselves
with the Spaniards or provide them with the troops
they need to be victorious. Cortés will quickly climb up
the high central pattern. He was received by Emperor Moctezuma,
the second in the city of Teotihuacan. Moctezuma received him
in the palace of his father. Cortés and his troops in the heart
of the ceremonial Aztec center. This is a great Aztec ceremony
with music day and night. Human sacrifices are made inside
the walls of the great temple. Then the Spanish troops
lose their self-control and massacre a good portion
of the indigenous nobility who have gathered in the center
of the ceremonial space for celebrations. This is the Noche Triste, the sad night. Through his diplomacy and prudence,
Cortés succeeded in maintaining a kind of status quo
for several months, living with Aztecs. He began to amass the gold
that they offered him. This will be the beginning of the war
and the Aztec resistance. The Emperor Moctezuma
who was held prisoner will be killed. It was an extremely hierarchical
political system, cut off the head and everything collapses. The Aztec resisted,
but there is a very quick collapse of this political structure
that has been so powerful. It takes about two years
from the arrival of the Spaniards to the full fall of Tenochtitlan. The capital city is destroyed. In its place,
the capital of New Spain will be built. Colonial power is directly established
in the same place, and the whole structure
of the empire collapses at once. For a long time, knowledge of the Aztecs
was based on ethno historical context and on accounts of the Spanish
made at the time of the conquest. They came into contact with these living civilizations
at their peak. We have an enormous amount
of information that comes from texts mostly written by the religious
and by Franciscans in particular from the time of evangelization. Archaeology is much more recent. It had been hindered by the fact
that the Aztec capital had been covered over by the modern city. However, over the years
have still been able to accumulate a lot of information,
archaeologically, as well. North of Mexico City Central Plaza, a number of Aztec buildings form
the religious center, the Templo Mayor. It included one pyramid
with two sanctuaries, temples, and also a college,
a music school and arsenals. The Templo Mayor
was a great double pyramid with a pair of stairways
finishing the two temples at the summit. Two principal deities were worshipped. They were at the top
of the Aztec pantheon. That is to say, they're various deities. There was Huitzilopochtli,
the God of sun and war, the God who guided them
to the place they settled. Then the traditional god,
at least the one that passed for the most traditional
in the basin of Mexico City, the god of rain,
agriculture and the settled population. Both are associated with the summit. The Templo Mayor, like many
of these pyramids, opens towards the West. It is behind these pyramids
the sun rises in the morning. It overlooks the place
that was crowded with buildings. It was surrounded by buildings. Excavations have taken place in the center
of Mexico City for almost 40 years now. In fact, they started the excavations
again beginning in 1978, thanks to the discovery
of a very large sculpture at the foot of the Southern access
to the main pyramid. It portrays the goddess of the moon,
dismembered by her brother, the sun god,
which Huitzilopochtli himself. Everything that was in the same area,
winning over the buildings, which were often historic buildings
from the colonial era, shows that there was
an extraordinary overload of structures. Thanks to the excavations
that there have been, along with nearby construction projects
in the streets or in blocks of colonial houses. We begin to reconstruct a map
of this main enclosure. For example,
there was work done in a building acquired by the Spanish
that they made into a cultural center, which is just next to the current
Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral. In doing this work,
they had to redo all the foundations. They excavated what was underneath, and there are buildings
that were part of the 78 buildings. They dug on the ground
which made up the heart of the city. The excavations of the Templo Mayor
are extremely important to the understanding
of ritual architecture, iconography, and even the rituals themselves. Now, testing is carried out,
especially chemical analysis of the soil. After the Spanish conquest
in the 16th century, the Templo Mayor was destroyed
and its exact location was forgotten. To dig the site of the great temple, archaeologists had entire buildings
and shops razed down and cut into one of the main roads
of the Mexican capital. Digs have brought to light
13 phases of construction, notably that of the pyramids
double staircase rising 45 meters high. In the colonial era, Native Americans
had shown very little resistance against the conquistadors
who they considered to be superhumans, and the Spanish
had carte blanche in the country. The Spanish arrived in 1519. They build a colonial capital
in Tenochtitlan. The city is destroyed and they build
colonial edifices on top of it. The modern city of Mexico is built
on the place where there used to be lakes. The Spanish were not used
to handle this type of environment with a variation in the level of the lakes
and hygiene problems as well. During the 16th century, there is a series
of catastrophes linked to flooding and pestilence arise. The Spanish, could not know how
to manage this lakeside environment, had the idea of draining the lake. They would take a long time to achieve it,
and it's only at the end of the 19th century that they will be able
to eliminate these Great Lakes by digging a canal
to help evacuate the water. Today, there are virtually
no more lake in Mexico City able to expand
onto the ancient lake areas. The modern city is superimposed
on the Aztec capital. The excavations
are part of urban archaeology. They are done for occasions
like the construction of the subway or when there are restorations
in the historic center which allows the excavations
of the Templo Mayor. Of the marvelous lakeside city
of Tenochtitlan, nothing remains today. The tentacular expansion
of Mexico City has covered everything. The Aztec empire went by in a flash. In less than 200 years,
this humble nomad people became the masters of the Mexico Valley
and its surrounding area. The Mexicás, as they called themselves, loved recounting the glorious epic
of their lengthy wandering in the desert. The empire they quickly developed and the submission
of foreign city-states before them. They found legitimacy in the belief
that their people had been chosen by the sun to lead the world. Today, the descendants of the Aztec
represent ten to 12 percent of the Mexican population.
