Styles of Aztec Buildings
- Aztecs constructed their buildings with wood. Often, they used pine or oak to construct supporting beams of the buildings. In addition, they used plaster, adobe and lime. Buildings were at times decorated with obsidian, loose stones and rubble.
- The Aztecs were highly religious and used to practice human sacrifice to please their gods. They sacrificed more than 20,000 people each year. They had special temples for this ritual, and the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan is one such temple.
The various cities competed with one another to build better temples; rather than destroying older temples, the Aztecs built over them.
These temples looked similar to the pyramids in Egypt. However, instead of having a pointed top, the temples had a flattened top with two cubicles for the human sacrifices. Skulls and sculpted blocks of stone adorned the sacrificial area. Even small figures that resembled dragons decorated the temple buildings.
Poorer temples used wood to construct the temple walls and thatch for the roof, while richer temples used stones to make the roofs. The Aztecs used carved stone blocks to make complicated geometric designs to decorate the temples. The walls were adorned with sculptures and murals. Usually, temples had two rooms --- one for the priest and one to serve as the main room to house the idol. - The most extravagant and biggest house was undoubtedly the royal palace, which consisted of two stories surrounded by a huge courtyard. Paintings, gold panels and carvings adorned the palace walls. Columns on the first floor supported the roof of the second floor, and the steps were made from marble.
The ground floor rooms had different functions. This floor consisted of four rooms: one for meeting dignitaries, one for the emperor's personal use, one for meeting noblemen and other important people of the city and one that served as a storeroom used for housing the gifts and tributes given to the emperor. - The home of the common man usually consisted of a single room made from adobe bricks with a thatched roof. The room had separate areas designated for sleeping, cooking and housing the family shrine. The furniture in the house consisted of reed mats and low tables.
The nobles lived in grander and more elaborate homes with several rooms; the law allowed the nobles to have a second story.
Many homes had a second adjacent building, which housed the steam bath or sauna. The steam bath had a furnace outside to heat the walls. When Aztecs took a steam bath, they dampened the walls, causing the steam to rise in the bath. - All cities had special shrines dedicated to the various Aztec gods. Each shrine had its own purpose. For instance, one shrine was for offerings while the other honored the sun god and the noble knights.
