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Construction
Construction of Templo Mayor
main Temple of Tenochtitlan
- 1325
- Mesoamerica and the Caribbean
Construction
main Temple of Tenochtitlan
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
The Templo Mayor (from Spanish: 'Main Temple') was the main temple of the Mexica people in their capital city of Tenōchtitlan, which is now Mexico City. Erected in its final form in the late Postclassic period, the temple was called Huēyi Teōcalli [we:ˈi teoːˈkalːi] in the Nahuatl language, meaning 'great church' or 'great house of god', and understood to be the center of the universe. It was dedicated simultaneously to Huītzilōpōchtli, god of war, and Tlāloc, god of rain and agriculture, each of which had a shrine at the top of the pyramid with separate staircases. The central spire was devoted to Quetzalcōātl in his form as the wind god, Ehēcatl. The temple devoted to Huītzilōpōchtli and Tlāloc, measuring approximately 100 by 80 m (328 by 262 ft) at its base, dominated the Sacred Precinct. Construction of the first temple began sometime after 1325, and it was rebuilt six times. The temple was almost totally destroyed by the Spanish in 1521, and Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral was built nearby.
The Zócalo, or main plaza of Mexico City today, was developed to the southwest of Templo Mayor, which is located in the block between Seminario and Justo Sierra streets. The site is part of the Historic Center of Mexico City, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1987. It received 801,942 visitors in 2017.
The first of seven temples built on the Templo Mayor site was built in 1325, and the second temple existed by 1375. In 1454, the largest known expansion of the temple took place under the guidance of Moctezuma I.
The seventh temple was first mentioned by the conquistadors in 1519, and the temple was last altered by the Aztecs in 1520. The conquistadors then sacked and destroyed the building one year later in 1521.
After the destruction of Tenōchtitlan, the Templo Mayor, like most of the rest of the city, was disassembled to be used as construction materials to create the Spanish colonial city. The Temple's exact location was forgotten. By the 20th century, scholars had a good idea where to look for it based on archeological work completed at the end of the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries. Leopoldo Batres did some excavation work at the end of the 19th century under the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral because, at the time, researchers thought the cathedral had been built over the ruins of the temple, though it was later proven to be just southwest of the temple.
In the first decades of the 20th century, Manuel Gamio found part of the southwest corner of the temple, and his findings were put on public display. However, the discovery did not generate great public interest in excavating further as the zone was an upper-class residential area. In 1933, Emilio Cuevas found part of a staircase and beam. In 1948, Hugo Moedano and Elma Estrada Balmori excavated a platform containing serpent heads and offerings. In 1966, Eduardo Contreras and Jorge Angula excavated a chest containing offerings, which had first been explored by Gamio.
The push to fully excavate the site did not come until late in the 20th century. On 21 February 1978, workers for Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), the city's electricity provider, were digging at a place in the city then popularly known as the "island of the dogs" as the area was slightly elevated and stray dogs would gather there during times of flooding. Just over two meters down, the diggers struck a massive pre-Hispanic stone disk of over 3.25 meters (10.7 feet) in diameter, 30 centimeters (11.8 inches) thick, and weighing 8.5 metric tons (8.4 long tons; 9.4 short tons). The relief on the stone was later determined to be Coyolxauhqui, Huitzilopochtli's sister, and was dated to the end of the 15th century.
From 1978 to 1982, specialists directed by archeologist Eduardo Matos Moctezuma worked on the project to excavate the Temple. Initial excavations found that many of the artifacts were in good enough condition to study. Efforts coalesced into the Templo Mayor Project, which was authorized by presidential decree.
To complete the excavation, 13 buildings in this area were demolished including 9 built in the 1930s and 4 dating from the 19th century that had preserved colonial elements. During excavations, more than 7,000 objects were found, mostly offerings including effigies; clay pots in the image of Tlaloc; skeletons of turtles, frogs, crocodiles, and fish; snail shells; coral; gold; alabaster; Mixtec figurines; ceramic urns from Veracruz; masks from what is now Guerrero state; copper rattles; and decorated skulls and knives of obsidian and flint. These artifacts are now housed in the Templo Mayor Museum. This museum is the result of the work done since the early 1980s to rescue, preserve, and investigate Templo Mayor, its Sacred Precinct, and all objects associated with it while making these findings available to the public.
The excavated site consists of two parts: 1) the temple itself, exposed and labeled to show its various stages of development, along with some other associated buildings, and 2) the museum, built to house the smaller and more fragile objects.
The process of expanding an Aztec temple was typically completed by new structures being built over earlier ones, using the bulk of the former as a base for the latter. The Aztecs began construction of Templo Mayor sometime after 1325, and the temple was rebuilt six times. All seven stages of the Templo Mayor, except the first, have been excavated and assigned to the reigns of the emperors who were responsible for them.
The first temple is only known through historical records because the high water table of the old lakebed prevents excavation. According to these records, the first pyramid was built with earth and perishable wood, which may not have survived to the present time.
The second temple was built during the reigns of Acamapichtli, Huitzilihuitl and Chimalpopoca between 1375 and 1427. The upper part of this temple has been excavated, exposing two stone shrines covered in stucco on the north side. A chacmool was uncovered as well. On the south side, there is a sacrificial stone called a téchcatl and a sculpted face.
The third temple was built between 1427 and 1440 during the reign of Itzcoatl. A staircase with eight stone standard-bearers is from this stage bearing the glyph with the year Four-Reed (1431). These standard bearers act as "divine warriors" guarding the access to the upper shrines.
The fourth temple was constructed between 1440 and 1481 during the reigns of Moctezuma I and Axayacatl. This stage is considered to have the richest of the architectural decorations as well as sculptures. Most findings from the excavations date from this period. The great platform was decorated with serpents and braziers, some of which are in the form of monkeys and some in the form of Tlaloc. During this time, the stairway to the shrine of Tlaloc was defined by a pair of undulating serpents and the middle of this shrine was a small altar featuring a pair of sculpted frogs. The circular monolith of Coyolxauhqui also dates from this time.
The fifth temple (1481–1486) is dated to the short reign of Tizoc. During these five years, the platform was recovered in stucco and the ceremonial plaza was paved.
The sixth temple was built during the reign of Ahuizotl. He finished some of the updates made by Tizoc and added his own, as shown on the carvings of the "commemoration stone of the huei teocalli", depicting the two tlatoqueh celebrating the opening of the temple during the last day of the month Panquetzaliztli dedicated to Huitzilopochtli, day 7 acatl of the year 8 acatl (19 December 1487). The Sacred Precinct was walled off, and this wall was decorated with serpent heads. He built three shrines and the House of the Eagle Warriors.
Very little remains of the Seventh Temple because of the demolitions undertaken to build the cathedral. Only a platform to the north and a section of paving in the courtyard on the south side can still be seen. Most of what is known about this temple is based on the historical record. It was at the time the largest and most important active ceremonial center. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún reported that the Sacred Precinct had 78 buildings with Templo Mayor towering above them all.
The pyramid was composed of four sloped terraces with a passage between each level, topped by a great platform. It had two stairways to access the two shrines on the top platform. Facing the structure, the left shrine was dedicated to the water god Tlaloc while the right shrine was dedicated to the god of the sun and war, Huitzilopochtli. The two temples were approximately 60 meters (200 feet) in height, including the pyramid, and each had large braziers where the sacred fires continuously burned. The entrance to each temple had statues of robust and seated men which supported the standard-bearers and banners of handmade bark paper. Each stairway was defined by balustrades flanking the stairs, terminating in menacing serpent heads at the base. These stairways were used only by the priests and sacrificial people. The entire building was originally covered with stucco and polychrome paint.
The deities were housed inside the temple, shielded from the outside by curtains. The figure of Huitzilopochtli was modeled from amaranth seeds held together with honey and human blood. Inside of him were bags containing jade, bones, and amulets to give life to the god. This figure was constructed annually, and it was richly dressed and fitted with a mask of gold for his festival held during the Aztec month of Panquetzaliztli. At the end of the festival, the image was broken apart and shared among the populace to be eaten.
In his description of the city, Cortés records that he and the other Spaniards were impressed by the number and magnificence of the temples constructed in Tenōchtitlan, but that this was tempered by disdain for their beliefs and human sacrifice. On 14 November 1519, Cortes seized the emperor Moctezuma II and ordered the destruction of all Aztec religious relics. Cortes ordered a Catholic cross placed on the Templo Mayor. While Cortes left for Veracruz to confront Spaniards looking to arrest him, Pedro de Alvarado, claiming to have uncovered a plot, staged a massacre of the Aztec nobility in the Sacred Precinct while they celebrated a religious festival. Unarmed and trapped within the walls of the Sacred Precinct, an estimated 8,000–10,000 Aztec nobles were killed. When word of the massacre spread throughout the city, the people turned on the Spaniards, killing seven, wounding many, and driving the rest back to their quarters. The Spaniards were trapped between two Aztec forces, and 68 were captured alive. Ten of these Spanish captives were immediately sacrificed at the Temple, and their severed heads were thrown back to the Spaniards. The others were sacrificed at the Great Temple that night, which could be seen from the Spanish camps. The sacrificed Spaniards were flayed, and their faces – with beards attached – were tanned and sent to allied towns, both to solicit assistance and to warn against betraying the Triple Alliance. The Spaniards were later temporarily evicted from the city but recruited allies to besiege and capture it in 1521.
After the fall of Tenōchtitlan in 1521, the lands controlled by the Aztecs became part of the Spanish empire. All the temples, including the Templo Mayor, were sacked, taking all objects of gold and other precious materials. Cortés, who had ordered the destruction of the existing capital, had a Mediterranean-style city built on the site. Essential elements of the old imperial center, including the Templo Mayor, were buried under similarly key features of the new city in what is now the historical downtown of the Mexico City. The Templo Mayor and Sacred Precinct were demolished and a Spanish church, later the main cathedral, was built on the western half of the precinct.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Templo Mayor”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.