By 900, a new culture was emerging in northern Mexico, in the city of Tula. The people there were the Toltecs. They spread their culture through wars and trade, and influenced many other cultures in what is
Today Mexico and Guatemala. The Toltecs took certain aspects of the Teotihuacan culture, such as styles of art and architecture, and added them to their own culture.
The Toltecs also spread their belief in the god Quetzalcoatl. The god’s name means “quetzal-feathered serpent” (the quetzal is a colorful bird found in Central America). The Toltecs believed this god was a skilled warrior and created human beings. According to Aztec mythology, Quetzalcoatl was the son of the leader of an ancient people; he left home so that he could become the ruler of the Toltecs. Under his rule, the people were respected as great artists and scientists. Quetzalcoatl was later fooled by Tezcatlipoca, a god of evil and trickery, who took the form of a sly human. Tezcatlipoca tricked Quetzalcoatl into leaving the Toltec lands, but Quetzalcoatl promised to return at a later date.
The city of Tula grew as a center for crafts and religious events. By 1000, the population reached about 60,000 people. Artisans shaped obsidian into knives and spearheads, as well as bowls, plates, jugs, and storage jars. These goods were traded in the city’s marketplace.
The Pyramids of Teotihuacan
The Aztecs gave the city of Teotihuacan its name; it means "the place where the gods were created." They believed the city was located in an ancient area where two older gods sacrificed themselves to become new gods, the sun and the moon. The Aztecs used the names of those powerful gods to describe Teotihuacan's two largest pyramids, the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon.
The builders of the pyramids wanted to show their respect for the gods, so they
Painted the temples bright red, making them glow in the sun. The people of Teotihuacan built the Pyramid of the Sun above a cave that was thought to be a link to the underworld, the place where spirits lived.
The pyramids of Teotihuacan and other ancient remains there led the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to name the city a World Heritage Site. This means Teotihuacan is recognized as having special historical and cultural importance.
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What Is Your Name?
Toltec was not the culture's own name for itself. As with many ancient peoples, what they called themselves is unknown. The name used for them today came from the Aztecs. In Nahuatl, toltecatl is the word for "craftsman" or "artisan." Toltec was the name the Aztecs later used for the people who passed ontheTeotihua-can tradition of quality craftsmanship.
People from the outlying farms and villages flocked to Tula for the many religious festivals held there. Priests paraded through the center of the city’s main plaza and onto the two pyramids where human sacrifices were held. Each temple featured chacmools. A chacmool was a stone figure with a bowl where its stomach would be. During a human sacrifice, the victim’s heart was flung into the bowl of the chacmool. Temples also had racks for displaying the skulls of sacrifice victims. These rituals eventually became part of the Aztecs’ religious beliefs.
Tula had two ball courts where teams competed by passing a rubber ball through a hoop. This game was mainly religious, not sporting. It celebrated the victories of god-heroes over the gods of death. Teams fought hard to win because the losing team was usually sacrificed at the temple.
The empire of the Toltecs came to an end some time between 1150 and 1200. Enemies overran Tula. The city was burned and was never rebuilt. The Toltec culture faded away, but many of its customs were carried on by other peoples.
This chest plate (or chimalli) was made by Mixtec craftspeople using gold and turquoise. The Mixtecs were well-known for their ability to make beautiful gold objects.
World History
