Tenochtitlan
Lake-built metropolis
Tenochtitlan was the capital city of the Aztec Empire, built on an island in Lake Texcoco in central Mexico.
Founded around 1325, it grew into one of the largest cities in the world before Spanish conquistadors destroyed it in 1521.
Mexico City now stands on its ruins.
The name appears in historical and archaeological contexts: The market at Tenochtitlan amazed the Spanish soldiers.
Tropical pod-bearing tree
- obsidianGlassy igneous rock
- maizeCob-bearing cereal crop
- metateStone grinding platform
- tamalesFilled masa, steamed wrapped
tortillas · codex · macuahuitl · marketplace · causeways · aqueducts · tribute · nobility
Water-bounded land mass
- Lake TexcocoVanished Mexican basin lake
- causewaysElevated roads over water
- canalsConstructed water passages
- marketplaceVenue for commerce
palace · Moctezuma · central plaza · population · urban · administration · freshwater · dikes
Spanish conqueror of Mexico
- MoctezumaAztec emperor during conquest
- 1521A four-digit number
- siegeEncirclement forcing surrender
- conquistadorsSpanish colonial soldiers
Spanish · alliance · smallpox · fall · resistance · surrender · invasion · horses
Aztec feathered serpent god
Act of unearthing
- ruinsDecayed structural remains
- artifactsHuman-made historical objects
- pyramidsApex-topped geometric solids
- foundationsStructural bases below ground
relics · dig · ceramics · offerings · Mexico City · buried · discovery · preservation
Capital of its nation
- ChapultepecMexican capital's famous park-castle
- place namesGeographic designations
- national symbolsOfficial representations of countries
- founding mythNarrative explaining how something began
cacao
Tropical pod-bearing tree
tamales · tortillas · codex · macuahuitl · marketplace · causeways · aqueducts · tribute · nobility · warriors
island
Water-bounded land mass
- Lake TexcocoVanished Mexican basin lake
- causewaysElevated roads over water
- canalsConstructed water passages
marketplace · palace · Moctezuma · central plaza · population · urban · administration · freshwater · dikes
Cortés
Spanish conqueror of Mexico
conquistadors · Spanish · alliance · smallpox · fall · resistance · surrender · invasion · horses · cannons
Quetzalcoatl
Aztec feathered serpent god
excavation
Act of unearthing
- ruinsDecayed structural remains
- artifactsHuman-made historical objects
- pyramidsApex-topped geometric solids
foundations · relics · dig · ceramics · offerings · Mexico City · buried · discovery · preservation · heritage
Mexico City
Capital of its nation
- ChapultepecMexican capital's famous park-castle
- place namesGeographic designations
- national symbolsOfficial representations of countries
founding myth · indigenous heritage · museums · Diego Rivera · muralism
- Americas HistoryAmerican Revolution, Aztec Empire, colonial era, colonization, Columbus
- Latin AmericaArgentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Cuba
- Mexican HeritageAztec, Maya, mariachi, tequila, tortilla
- MexicoMexico City, Cancun, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Oaxaca
- settlementsvillage, cities, hamlet, city, towns
- Aztec WorldAztecs, Aztec, Aztec Empire, Lake Texcoco, Moctezuma
TenochtitlanMexico City
Capital of its nation
Madrid · Spanish Empire · Hernán Cortés · Seville · Toledo
TenochtitlanMachu Picchu
Incan sanctuary in Peru
Tikal · Cusco · Mesa Verde · Pompeii · Angkor Wat