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tlan, in which as many as 80,400 captives were sacrificed. Within Tenochtitlan, many prisoners were sacrificed at the coateocalli or coacalco, where the foreign gods were kept.
90 Others were sacrificed at night in the armories.91 |
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Some captives, usually nobles and great warriors, were sacrificed in gladiatorial combat at the temalacatl (see fig. 16)92 during the feast of Tlacaxipehualiztli.93 The captive was taken to the round sacrificial stone, where he was painted with stripes. He was given four cudgels to throw, a shield, and a sword with its obsidian blades replaced by feathers. After drinking octli, he fought warriorsseveral, if he was a great warrior. First he fought four warriors of the military orders in a rowtwo jaguar and two eagleand if he triumphed over each, he then fought all four together. If he still triumphed, then he fought a left-handed warrior. He fought until he was felled, whereupon he was stretched on his back, his chest was cut open, and his heart was torn out and dedicated to the sun. Then the body was flayed, and the skin was worn by the priests. |
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Captors did not kill their captives but brought them as offerings to the priests, who carried out the sacrifices, dragging the captives to the sacrificial stone if they faltered, and sacrificing them to Huitzilopochtli. After they were killed, the bodies were laid by the skull rack, and each warrior identified the one that he had captured. Then the body was taken to the captor's home, where it was eaten; the bones were hung in the house as a sign of prestige.94 The heads of those who were sacrificed were skinned, the flesh was dried, and the skulls were place on the skull rack, the tzompantli95 (see figs. 28 and 29). In the flower wars captives were also sought for sacrifice. But more probably died in combat than were captured.96 |
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