The Aztec culture, contrary to the other civilizations of Mesoamerica, began something late its cultural ascent, probably toward the year 1325 BC., when they settled down in the Lake of Texcoco, in which began the construction of the city of Tenochtitlán, today city of Mexico. The Aztecs had been a warring and nomadic tribe of hunters and recolectors, coming from the semi-arid region of the north of Mexico. In the following centuries and until the arrival of the Spaniards, they dominated
the neighboring towns and they built a vast empire.
The Aztec were farmers that distributed the city of Tenochtitlán in 20 clans or
calpullis that contained the families in the 4 neighborhoods of the city. Each capulli was relatively autonomous of the other ones, it had its own sacred symbols, parties and exclusive lands for the production, with those that it covered the expenses of the temple. It also had lands to cover the expenses of the palace and of the priests, the judges's lands, lands for the expenses of wars, and the private lands of the " noblemen " and illustrious men, rapturous to the conquered towns.
The Aztecs were those that had a marked pyramidal social stratification. In the peak, were the noble gentlemen and illustrate together with the priests, followed by the warriors and the merchants. In the base of the social pyramid were the farmers that usufructed the earth in communal form, and the slaves for debt, like
penalty imposed by a crime or to have been prisoner of war.
The Aztecs caused the calls florid wars, to achieve prisoners of war that were
offered to the gods, believing that the blood of the sacrifices gave force in
the sun, to follow its road in the night and to appear again in the horizont.
This stone of 4 meter diameter is the biggest Aztec sculpture ever found. In the center of the stone it is the face of the sun. This sculpture is also known with the name of Aztec Calendar". in fact, it represents the Aztec belief that the universe had gone by four previous worlds that had been destroyed. Now we are in the fifth world, convict to be destroyed by earthquakes. In accordance with the Aztec mythology, the sun, the moon and the human beings were created with success
at the beginning of fifth era.