The Aztec Empire
18 March - 18 September 2005
guggenheim-bilbao.es

fig.: Coatlicue, Aztec, ca. 1500 Stone, turquoise, shell, and pigment. 115 x 40 x 35 cm. Museo Nacional de Antropología, INAH, Ciudad de México 10-8534. Photo Michel Zabé, assistant Enrique Macías

The most important gods of the Aztecs were the sun god and the gods of earth (rain, wind,...). They symbolize the renewal of life. Earth was deified through various attributes: it was the final destination of humans, the origin of life and the sphere in which food was created, manifested as Coatlicue. (The snake is a symbol for water and the eternity/renewal of life. This symbol is already used by medics and pharmacy.) next>>>