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Aztecs Were A Contemporary Rapidly Built Empire
- The Aztecs were a contemporary, recently formed empire roughly 100 years old before the Spanish arrived.
- Tenochtitlan grew into a massive capital of ~250,000 people within 13 square kilometers, larger than Tudor London by ~5x.
Communal Labor Built Tenochtitlan Not Mass Slavery
- Aztec communal labor obligations built and maintained huge public works rather than relying primarily on slave labor.
- Each calpulli (district) supplied men for set days of work, supporting aqueducts, roads and temples while land remained community-owned.
Heart Extraction Ritual Used Obsidian's Extreme Sharpness
- The common temple sacrifice used five priests who restrained the victim while a fifth used an obsidian knife to remove the heart.
- Obsidian blades were sharper than scalpel steel, suited to precise ritual incisions though brittle against metal.