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Sculpture[edit]

Sculptures were carved in stone and wood, but few wood carvings have survived. Aztec stone sculptures exist in many sizes from small figurines and masks to large monuments, and are characterized by a high quality of craftsmanship. Many sculptures were carved in highly realistic styles, for example realistic sculpture of animals such as rattlesnakes, dogs, jaguars, frogs, turtle and monkeys. In Aztec artwork a number of monumental stone sculptures have been preserved, such sculptures usually functioned as adornments for religious architecture. Particularly famous monumental rock sculpture includes the so-called Aztec "Sunstone" or Calendarstone discovered in 1790; also discovered in 1790 excavations of the Zócalo was the 2.7 meter tall Coatlicue statue made of andesite, representing a serpentine chthonic goddess with a skirt made of rattlesnakes. The Coyolxauhqui Stone representing the dismembered goddess Coyolxauhqui, found in 1978, was at the foot of the staircase leading up to the Great Temple in Tenochtitlan. Two important types of sculpture are unique to the Aztecs, and related to the context of ritual sacrifice: the cuauhxicalli or "eagle vessel", large stone bowls often shaped like eagles or jaguars used as a receptacle for extracted human hearts; the temalacatl, a monumental carved stone disk to which war captives were tied and sacrificed in a form of gladiatorial combat. The most well known examples of this type of sculpture are the Stone of Tizoc and the Stone of Motecuzoma I, both carved with images of warfare and conquest by specific Aztec rulers.

Mottled Grey Stone Diagram of Mask of Tezcatlipoca

For example, depicted on the Stone of Tizoc is an image of Tezcatlipoca opposite Quetzalcoatl. Tezcatlipoca is a powerful Aztec deity that is also known as the "smoking mirror." He is associated with divinity and fate, but also evil and war. Tezcatlipoca rewarded people with riches, wealth, nobility, and honor. However, he also brought vice and sin, and anguish and affliction to Earth. The powerful deity could be present on Earth, Heaven, or the land of the dead. He is often shown as a jaguar opposite a serpent, Queztalcoatl. An emblem consisting of two mirrors and four balls of Eagles, representative of Human Sacrifice, represents Tezcatlipoca.

Many smaller stone sculptures depicting deities also exist. The style used in religious sculpture was rigid stances likely meant to create a powerful experience in the onlooker. Although Aztec stone sculptures are now displayed in museums as unadorned rock, they were originally painted in vivid polychrome color, sometimes covered first with a base coat of plaster. Early Spanish conquistador accounts also describe stone sculptures as having been decorated with precious stones and metal, inserted into the plaste

Materials

Aztec sculptures were constructed from a variety of materials, mostly stone ranging from volcanic rock to sandstone and basalt. Other materials were more perishable, like ceramic, wood, and even dough. More special materials were also often taken from surrounding tribute lands, and used in the sculptures as examples of the Aztec affluence in the area.

Non-Perishable Material

Stone sculpture was used for temples and offerings, in large and small forms. The type of stone was typically volcanic rock because of its durability. Greenstone was also used in stone sculpture.

Perishable Material

Unlike the long lasting material of stone, wood, ceramic, and dough materials are more perishable materials. Despite the perishability of these materials, there is a great amount of detail expressed in these sculptures because the wood and ceramic is more malleable than stone.

An example of wooden sculpture is the Huehuetl of Malinalco, a musical drum. There is a rich amount of detail in the engravings.

There are a few surviving examples of Aztec sculpture in more perishable forms, such as ceramic. One existing example of a ceramic sculpture is the Brazier of a Dead Warrior, which is intact and provides an example of how the Aztecs used ceramic. The use of ceramic in this sculpture shows the Aztec people's awareness of the different qualities of different materials. So in the example of the Brazier of a Dead Warrior, the ceramic was chosen for this sculpture because it needed to withstand the heat of the fires.