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The Aztec: The Last Great Civilization of Mesoamerica
Among the most famous of the civilizations produced by the New World was the great Aztec Empire, centered at Tenochtitlan. This culture had captured the imaginations of many throughout the centuries because of its grandeur, power, and quite often, its brutality.
The The Last Great Civilization of Mesoamerica is a short introduction to Aztec history and culture, encompassing every period from the origin of the Aztec peoples to their eventual conquest by the Spanish in the early 16th century. It endeavors to present a detailed overview of the arc of this history, yet still remain accessible and easy to understand for the reader who has not specialized in the study of the Aztec or of Mesoamerican history in general.
The Aztec, moving into the Valley of Mexico late in the pre-Columbian history of Mesoamerica, rapidly grew from little more than a nomadic tribe to a civilization the likes of which had seldom been seen on Earth, rivaling even the greatest cultures of Europe and Asia at the time. With a strong society, a rich cultural tradition and a military that was second to none in the New World, the Aztec became the dominating force in all of Mexico. At the same time, their religion, one which demanded a hefty toll in human sacrifice, became one of the most singular in all of human history, often going so far as to deprive the Aztec society itself of human resources and spur wars intended almost exclusively to acquire new sacrifices.
Though these are the commonly known elements of Aztec society, there is much that is often ignored because of the more sensational elements of their history. Trade, for example, was a massive facet of Aztec society, which the empire exploited by establishing trade routes that crisscrossed Mesoamerica from the American southwest to the Inca Empire in the Peruvian Andes. Art, science and technology also made up part of this rich cultural tradition among the Aztec.
In all of Mesoamerican history, there had never been a civilization quite like the Aztec empire. Now, with modern archaeology and antique records, historical researchers the world over have managed to create a comprehensive profile of this remarkable society. The The Last Great Civilization of Mesoamerica offers the reader an overview of what has been learned about this great empire, including some recently discovered facts and conclusions that have been drawn from ongoing research throughout a broad scholarly community.
The The Last Great Civilization of Mesoamerica is a short introduction to Aztec history and culture, encompassing every period from the origin of the Aztec peoples to their eventual conquest by the Spanish in the early 16th century. It endeavors to present a detailed overview of the arc of this history, yet still remain accessible and easy to understand for the reader who has not specialized in the study of the Aztec or of Mesoamerican history in general.
The Aztec, moving into the Valley of Mexico late in the pre-Columbian history of Mesoamerica, rapidly grew from little more than a nomadic tribe to a civilization the likes of which had seldom been seen on Earth, rivaling even the greatest cultures of Europe and Asia at the time. With a strong society, a rich cultural tradition and a military that was second to none in the New World, the Aztec became the dominating force in all of Mexico. At the same time, their religion, one which demanded a hefty toll in human sacrifice, became one of the most singular in all of human history, often going so far as to deprive the Aztec society itself of human resources and spur wars intended almost exclusively to acquire new sacrifices.
Though these are the commonly known elements of Aztec society, there is much that is often ignored because of the more sensational elements of their history. Trade, for example, was a massive facet of Aztec society, which the empire exploited by establishing trade routes that crisscrossed Mesoamerica from the American southwest to the Inca Empire in the Peruvian Andes. Art, science and technology also made up part of this rich cultural tradition among the Aztec.
In all of Mesoamerican history, there had never been a civilization quite like the Aztec empire. Now, with modern archaeology and antique records, historical researchers the world over have managed to create a comprehensive profile of this remarkable society. The The Last Great Civilization of Mesoamerica offers the reader an overview of what has been learned about this great empire, including some recently discovered facts and conclusions that have been drawn from ongoing research throughout a broad scholarly community.
- GenresHistory
126 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 26, 2016
18 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 11, 2018
A Simple and Plain Work on Culture
Knowing about another culture is always insightful as it shifts ones perspetives and allows one to re-evaluate one's own position in the universe. This re-alignment relative to the universe is essential for a global citizenship. I picked up this book with the same intention. Also, I had my first brush with first people's and tribes problems and issues when I visited Arizona in 2010. I had visited museums, interacted with a few first people and brought home their origin stories of Navajo and Hopi people. I was fascinated to know that the Navajo tribes passed on their culture to their young through stories and Katchina dolls. It is similar to how we have a doll show-case during Dussehra festival. It was astonishing to know that the Hopi believed in the chakra systems just like ancient Indian and Chinese believed that the human body is made up of several energy centers. These bits of knowledge helped me to understand that human thinking and philosophical thoughts are highly aligned across the world.
Through the works of James Michener like Alaska, Texas, and Caribbean I could intimately understand the conflicts between the first people of the Americas and the Christian invaders. These works portrayed very clearly and succinctly, through a dramatic interplay of characters, the nature of cultural and value conflicts within and in-between individuals. I expected The Aztec to do the same. However, I knew that this is a work of non-fiction and hence did not expect too much of drama.
The first disappointment to me in this books was that the narrative was nowhere close to my expectations. The book begins, continues and ends as a scholarly treatment of the history of the people based on well-known facts. Nothing more. Nothing less. For instance, we do know about the historical massacre carried out by a Spanish military commander at Templo Mayor and a succinct analysis of the reasons behind the massacre, but with a dry tone and simply "as a matter of fact." This scholarly treatment of the subject is what put me off. I was not reading a Ph.D., thesis. I was reading a non-fiction work!
However, the book presents many interesting facets of The Aztec life. It was awesome to see and understand how they expanded their empire, how they addressed problems of sustained and continuous food supply and the faltering way in which they developed their culture and empire. It is equally interesting to see how such a great empire fell. I do understand that there is perhaps limited material authentic enough to be called historical evidence and a ton of myth and legend to sift from. The author could have tried to balance both but yet chose to go with the academic treatment.
However, I would recommend this book to an absolutely fresh person to First People's problems and also those who have a compelling reason to understand these problems more intimately.
Knowing about another culture is always insightful as it shifts ones perspetives and allows one to re-evaluate one's own position in the universe. This re-alignment relative to the universe is essential for a global citizenship. I picked up this book with the same intention. Also, I had my first brush with first people's and tribes problems and issues when I visited Arizona in 2010. I had visited museums, interacted with a few first people and brought home their origin stories of Navajo and Hopi people. I was fascinated to know that the Navajo tribes passed on their culture to their young through stories and Katchina dolls. It is similar to how we have a doll show-case during Dussehra festival. It was astonishing to know that the Hopi believed in the chakra systems just like ancient Indian and Chinese believed that the human body is made up of several energy centers. These bits of knowledge helped me to understand that human thinking and philosophical thoughts are highly aligned across the world.
Through the works of James Michener like Alaska, Texas, and Caribbean I could intimately understand the conflicts between the first people of the Americas and the Christian invaders. These works portrayed very clearly and succinctly, through a dramatic interplay of characters, the nature of cultural and value conflicts within and in-between individuals. I expected The Aztec to do the same. However, I knew that this is a work of non-fiction and hence did not expect too much of drama.
The first disappointment to me in this books was that the narrative was nowhere close to my expectations. The book begins, continues and ends as a scholarly treatment of the history of the people based on well-known facts. Nothing more. Nothing less. For instance, we do know about the historical massacre carried out by a Spanish military commander at Templo Mayor and a succinct analysis of the reasons behind the massacre, but with a dry tone and simply "as a matter of fact." This scholarly treatment of the subject is what put me off. I was not reading a Ph.D., thesis. I was reading a non-fiction work!
However, the book presents many interesting facets of The Aztec life. It was awesome to see and understand how they expanded their empire, how they addressed problems of sustained and continuous food supply and the faltering way in which they developed their culture and empire. It is equally interesting to see how such a great empire fell. I do understand that there is perhaps limited material authentic enough to be called historical evidence and a ton of myth and legend to sift from. The author could have tried to balance both but yet chose to go with the academic treatment.
However, I would recommend this book to an absolutely fresh person to First People's problems and also those who have a compelling reason to understand these problems more intimately.
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April 16, 2020The book is small around 126 pages. Simple informations about the Aztec civilization. Not a scholar book and very easy to read even for not native speakers of English. The writer is a little biased against the Spaniard and somehow glorifies the Aztec leaders and their civilization. Very few information about the Aztec's human sacrifices.
I recommend this book.
I recommend this book.
December 2, 2016
Aztec Greatness
A very detailed review of the rise and fall of the great Aztec nation. The good, the bad and the evil.
A very detailed review of the rise and fall of the great Aztec nation. The good, the bad and the evil.
August 19, 2017
Quite detailed for such a short volume. Though the author gets a bit sassy at times and very sure of himself, the information is very solid. He also provides great references for further reading.
February 10, 2017
A wonderful book.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews