Aztec Temples
Aztec temples were called, by the Mexica people of the empire, Teocalli - god houses. The priests of the Aztec religion went to these temples to worship and pray, and make offerings to the gods to keep them strong and in balance.
Identifying the Aztec temples has been a tricky job at times. It's been easy to simply assume that large, monumental structures such as pyramids are all either palaces or temples, but that may not be the case. Still, we do have a good understanding of what happened in the religious areas and how the many of the buildings looked hundreds of years ago.
Often a whole area of a city would be dedicated to religious activities. Some monuments would be made to specific gods. Some were built for specific celebrations. The buildings you probably associate with the Aztec religion are the great pyramids. These were four sided, stable structures that can withstand the earthquakes that are common in the area. These would have stairs up one side, and a flat top, often with a shrine on the top. Let's take a look at some of the Aztec temples specifically:
Templo Mayor
Height: 60m/197ft
The gods: Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc
Distinctives: A double temple
Completed: 1497
Materials: Built of stone and covered with stucco and polychrome paint
Templo Mayor was a part of the sacred area of the city of Tenochtitlan, now Mexico City. It was only one of perhaps 75-80 buildings which included other pyramids, ornamental walls, gathering places, shops and, of course, bathrooms. Since the city was build on swampy ground, the temples would often sink and needed to be repaired and built up over the years.
The temple itself was the main religious building of the capitol city, and it had two shrines on the top - one to Huitzilopochtli and one to Tlaloc. Huitzilopochtli (Hummingbird of the South) was the patron god of the Mexica people, the one who led them to Tenochtitlan in the first place. He was the god of the sun and war. Tlaloc was the god of rain and fertility. Both gods required constant human sacrifice. During the final phase of construction, thousands were sacrificed.
Many, many rituals were done at the temple - human sacrifice, of course, is the most well known. But there were many more, such as the private ritual blood-letting, burning of copal (a tree resin), and the music of worship. This Aztec temple represented the Hill of Coatepec, where the Mexicas believed Huitzilopochtli was born.
