Aztec sculpture tongue obsidian knife8/12/2023 Their god called upon them for his insatiable thirst for human blood and sacrifice. The Aztecas believed they were guided by a blood-thirsty deity they called Huitzilopochtli who communicated to them through four priest-chieftains called teomama. The exact location of this region is not known but other than it was northwest of present-day Mexico City, the former center of the Aztec empire, but how far, it is a mystery. emerging from their former homeland called Aztlan or "place of the herons", an island in a lake where men went out to fish from boats. Aztec codices record that they began their wandering journey in 1100 A.D. The origin of the Aztec (Azteca) Empire is legendary. Colonial era codices exist in greater number with roughly 500 separate codices known, showing extensive pictograms as well as being written in Spanish, Latin and in the original Nahuatl language. These codices were created by the Aztecs in pictorial form, as well as by other indigenous tribal sources, all of which had no written language. An extensive and detailed collection of written and pictorial records exist for us today called CODICES (CODEX if singular) were produced before Spanish contact by the native tribes themselves, and afterwards during the Colonial period. While many ancient civilizations remain a mystery, little can be left to conjecture when it comes to the details of the Aztec way of life. Note the additional hands and feet still attached to the skin being worn! The first is the ritual human flaying sacrifice, followed by two images of a priest wearing a garment of flayed human skin taken from the sacrifice victim. Various Aztec codices are shown below depicting worship of Xipe Totec. Caution must be applied in acquiring AUTHENTIC ancient obsidian artifacts because the stone does not patinate on the surface like other lithic types. Common household razor blades are 100 times thicker than obsidian!Īncient mineral deposits can be seen deep in the flake scars of this obsidian artifact which is an indicator ONLY found in AUTHENTIC specimens such as this. Obsidian is 15 times sharper than surgical steel, It’s no wonder that obsidian became a valuable tool in medicine and warfare when you consider that at an obsidian scalpel can rival diamond in the fineness of its edge. Because of its sharpness, obsidian leaves less of a scar and does less tissue damage than a scalpel or knife made of any other substance known to Man. As a matter of fact, aside from using lasers in modern surgery, the preferred scalpel is one from obsidian. Obsidian was prized by the ancient Pre-Columbian Indians and even today, it is still used in modern medicine for scalpel blades as obsidian can flake to an edge one molecule thick, thereby attaining a level of sharpness impossible to achieve with a steel scalpel. These containers were then stored in a chamber beneath the temple When the twenty-day festival was over, the flayed skins were removed and stored in special containers with tight-fitting lids designed to stop the stench of putrefaction from escaping. They passed through the city begging alms and blessed whoever gave them food or other offerings. During the festival, victorious warriors wearing flayed skins carried out mock skirmishes throughout Tenochtitlan. The skins were often adorned with bright feathers and gold jewellery when worn. This act of putting on new skin was a ceremony called 'Neteotquiliztli' translating to "impersonation of a god". After having the heart cut out, the body was carefully flayed to produce a nearly whole skin which was then worn by the priests for twenty days during the fertility rituals that followed the sacrifice. Entire obsidian blades like these are RARE to be found in this perfect, unbroken condition.Įach year, slaves or captives were selected as sacrifices to Xipe Totec. The entire blade is complete AS MADE with exceptional parallel flaking throughout. The rounded ends were to prevent accidental piercing of the skin as it was removed from the victim. The entire surface of this blade has been masterfully flaked to a fine, thin cross-section. It also would have been used to deflesh human skin that was then worn by priests in the macabre ritual to honor the Aztec god Xipe Totec. The less refined end would have been inserted into a handle and the long blade used to flay the skin off of human sacrifice victims. This exquisitely made bifacial obsidian tongue-shaped blade comes from the Pre-Columbian Aztec Culture.
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